What Lies Beyond the Walls
by KuroRiya
Summary: An annual sacrifice made to the loathsome creatures in a bid to abate them tears a friendship apart, but inadvertently puts it back together again. Not only that, but it may have strengthened the bonds, allowing for something more to slip between the seams. EreMin, and rated for later chapters. AU, but still involves Titans and many other canon things, like the walls and military.
1. Chapter 1

It was a stupid, pointless thing that we did. Everyone knew, deep down somewhere, that it was wrong, that it wasn't helping anything. But human habits die hard. And so, every year, despite the never waning attacks that the Titans launched against us, despite the number mercilessly eaten daily, despite how often the Titans managed to breach our walls and rampage freely before the soldiers managed to repair the wall or gate and kill the trapped ones off, we made our pathetic sacrifice. I was never sure where the mentality behind it came from. 'Maybe if we willingly feed them once a year, they'll lose their appetite.' It's laughable, really. If anything, we're drawing more of them towards our walls by dangling a human off of them. But a large enough percentage of the population supports the practise, and so it continues.  
I should mention that I'm particularly bitter in regards to this subject. My best friend was chosen as the sacrifice when I was fifteen. They try to pick small people, ones that have less chance of survival anyway. At the time, Eren was pretty scrawny. It was easy to see that, given a few more years to mature and train his body, he could have been quite strong. But he wasn't given that opportunity. He had been spotted by one of the ceremony deacons, and suggested as the sacrifice. He was skinny, and lanky, only recently having hit puberty and still growing into his body.

We fought, harder than we ever had before. We screamed and clawed, and Eren tried his best to utilize some hand to hand combat he had been taught by a friendly soldier. But we were easily overpowered by the older and stronger soldiers. This was what they were trained for, after all, of course they bested three children. Even Mikasa, the strongest of the three of us, could not pry Eren from their hands as they dragged him off. We followed behind them, begging them to let him go, to take someone else, anyone else. Eren thrashed in their arms, howled, bit, scratched, kicked, anything he could to try and escape or prove his strength in hopes that they would choose someone else. I wondered at the time how I had been overlooked. I was even smaller than Eren. But I guess I was _too _small, not worth their time, or the Titans'. They ignored us, simply readjusting their holds on Eren when he managed to get an arm free. They stopped in front of a door, and we hoped beyond hope that they would release Eren, but they instead entered and slammed the door in our faces, locking it with a loud click. I later learned that this door led down to a holding cell, where Eren was kept until the day of the ceremony.

I consider myself at least a little lucky. Mikasa was tasked with informing Eren's parents of his being chosen. At least I got to mourn quietly to myself, not having to watch someone else's grief as well. The next time I saw his mother, so utterly broken, was enough to send me into a fit. How Mikasa was able to act so strong in the face of it all is beyond me. But, when I came to the door of the holding cell the next day, as I made a habit of every day after Eren was taken from us, I could see scratch marks in the wood. If I looked close enough, I could even see blood streaked into the rivets. I never asked Mikasa about it, her broken and raw nails enough to confirm my suspicions.

There was nothing for us to do but wait. There was no such thing as a petition to free the sacrifice, no trial to prove that he didn't deserve this fate. On the last day, the day before the sacrifice, he was allowed visitors. I waited until the afternoon, wanting to give his parents some time alone with him. Though he was my closest friend, he was their son, and they had a right to take up the majority of his last moments. When I finally slouched in, I was surprised by how calm everything was. His parents sat together on a bench, pressed as close to the cell as was possible. Though they had obviously been crying, they were now silent and still, a morose air the only thing left. Mikasa sat on the floor, her hip flush with the bars, her face seemingly expressionless, her lips hidden behind the red scarf Eren had gifted to her years ago.

Eren lifted his head at the sound of my entrance, and even offered me a small smile, one that had me on my knees in an instant, bawling my eyes out. It was so fake, so painful, so different from the bright grin that usually lit up his face when he saw me. He was scared, absolutely terrified, and I knew it, he knew it, everyone knew it. My reaction elicited another bought of crying from his parents, Mikasa beckoning me over and pulling me against her, holding me as I wept into her shirt. Eren reached a hand through the bars, taking my hand, the only comfort he could offer me from his position, cuffed to the wall by a single shackle. But through all of my tears, Eren never broke, keeping his face and stance strong, trying to show me that he was still him, despite everything. He wanted me to know that he was strong, that he would always be strong. And I believed it, believed him. There was no one stronger than Eren, I had always thought so.

I eventually calmed enough to talk to him. We all took turns, saying something, bringing up a happy memory that centered around Eren, laughing halfheartedly in an attempt to make his last hours good ones. When our time with him was drawing to a close, Mikasa and I said goodbye, both of us agreeing that his parents deserved to be the last ones he saw. But it took a lot for me to let go of his hand, to so much as stand as I whimpered out goodbyes and promises. We went outside, Mikasa drawing me to her yet again as I failed to contain my tears, ugly sobs wracking through my frame. She eventually pulled me to my feet, walking me home and handing me off to my grandfather.

The next morning, I was among the first people that shuffled into the square. Everyone knew it was today, even though it was never announced. Mikasa and Eren's parents came only a few minutes after me, Mikasa taking my hand as we trailed behind Mr. and Mrs. Jaeger. The crowd was not allowed very close to the wall, but we got as close as we could, holding our stances for hours as bodies collected behind us. Then they brought Eren, walked him right down the center of the crowd. This was all part of the ritual. People shouted encouragements to him, some reaching out to squeeze his shoulder or clap him on the back. It was twisted, sick enough that my stomach churned, bile rising in my throat. I swallowed it down though, not wanting to look away from Eren as he walked for the last time.

As he neared, people shuffled aside for Mr. and Mrs. Jaeger, Mikasa and I close behind. The soldiers allowed Eren a pause when he reached them, giving him time to embrace his parents, Mikasa, me, and then his parents again. Then the soldiers urged him on with a shove. He reached his hand behind him, his cheeks wet with tears. It was the first time I'd seen him cry since being taken. He managed to keep a strong facade when the soldiers were carrying him away, the entire time I visited, even while he walked through the crowd.

But now the strong, fiery boy I had grown up with, that I knew so well, was utterly broken in front of me. Every spark that had ever flashed through his sparkling emerald eyes was gone, his irises dulled and muted now, though still stark against his paling face. It was dawning on him, he was finally realising that he could not escape. I couldn't even imagine how weak he felt, reduced to a mere child, his dreams stolen out from under him. His fingers seemed frail, delicate as they reached blindly for something, anything, to hold onto. My own tears sprung forth, my hand finding his and squeezing until he was wrenched away from me, dragged to the wall and bound harshly in thick wires he'd never be able to break through.  
My fingers ached from holding so tightly onto Eren's, from being forced apart, but it was nothing when compared to the ache in my stuttering heart. The cords looked painful, no real care taken with fastening them. I could already see where they would bite into his skin when they lowered him, where his bones would be broken when a Titan got their fingers or teeth on him and tried to yank him down.  
His frame was shaking, and I could tell that one the soldiers was holding him up, for his knees had long lost the strength to support him. Someone important, maybe a governor or a religious figure from the inner walls got up and shouted a speech to us, reminding us of the importance of the annual sacrifice, congratulating Eren as if he was fortunate, as if he had won a lottery drawing. It made my tears turn to those of hate and disgust as opposed to my previous tears of sorrow. It was sick, revolting.  
When he finished talking, we all knew it was time, the soldiers taking Eren to the top of the wall. He thrashed a bit in discomfort, seeing as he was suspended between two of them, and part of the cording came undone so that he slipped a bit, his face turned towards the crowd. The tears still fell; he had clearly given up, had resigned himself to the fate that awaited him on the other side of the wall that was supposed to be protecting him. The was no more hope, no more drive. He was released at the top, his body slumping against the cold concrete while the soldiers fastened the cords to anchors installed for that exact purpose. By then, we could already hear the sounds of gathering Titans, the guttural, wet sounds they produced with their throats. I shuddered, imagining what Eren must be seeing, what he must be thinking.  
And then they lowered him, slowly, his dark chocolate brown locks, greasy and matted against his head from days without washing the last I ever saw of him. I wanted to cry, to demand they bring him back, to inform everyone of his importance, of his dreams, his aspirations. I wanted to prove how much he deserved to live, how wrong they were for what they were doing. I wanted them to know just what they had done, how precious the life they were snuffing was to me, to the world. But the silence was too heavy, too commanding. I was unable to produce so much as a sound, rendered mute. We all waited, waited for any indication as to what was happening, for it was all on the other side of the wall, far from out visual field. It came quickly, the snapping of jaws and a terrified scream that was easily recognizable as Eren. I held my breath, wondering if I had just heard my friend's dying scream, but one of the men on the wall shouted, informing us of what was happening on the other side.  
A seven metre had tried, and failed, to reach Eren. We heard a thud and another cry, and were told that another seven had made an attempt. It was unlikely that a seven would be able to reach him though. The sacrifices were dangled pretty high, as the larger the Titan that got them, the better our year was supposed to be. Morbid, I thought to myself, too scared to say it aloud. After the seven, a five tried, its attempt even more fruitless. We passed nearly an hour in this fashion, Eren's cries the only think letting us know that he was still alive, barely clinging onto life, and only fighting death by instinct. And then we heard it, almost unnoticeable at first, but growing more intrusive by the second. The ground was shaking as the heavy footsteps fell, and one of the soldiers gasped in surprise.

We all waited, wanting to know what was going on. Finally they got their wits about them, and one shouted down to us. It was a big one, at least fourteen metres, maybe fifteen. And, to everyone's surprise, it was apparently female in form. It was then silent as we waited, wondering what it would sound like when it ate Eren. But all I heard was the snapping of cords, and then the same footsteps, retreating. The soldiers waited about a minute, then turned to us.  
It was done. Eren was gone from us forever, our annual sacrifice complete. The crowd buzzed with muted excitement. A fifteen metre was the biggest class, which meant we had a good year ahead of us, or so the feeble citizens wanted to believe. I couldn't handle it; Such a gruesome crime against our morals, against humanity, followed by cheer and smiles? I gagged, unable to swallow down the bile this time. Mikasa rested a hand on my back as I vomited on the ground. It wasn't comforting. She herself was too far gone to really offer me any comfort. But it showed me that she was still here, that she hadn't been eaten by a Titan like Eren had, that she wasn't partaking in the relief and quiet celebration.

Mikasa and I lingered in the square, even longer than Mr and Mrs. Jaeger. I'm sure Mikasa would have gone with them, if she thought I'd manage on my own. But I wouldn't. I couldn't even force myself to stand up. She had to practically drag me to my house yet again, leaving me to my grandfather. He was unable to console me as I wept, sobbing so violently that I was sick, several times. He instead allowed me to cry until I no longer had any tears left to cry, or vomit left to purge. My body was exhausted, but I didn't fall asleep that night, too disturbed by the visions I was subjecting myself to. I imagined Eren, dangling, unable to even defend himself or run away. I imagined him trying to flinch away from the smaller titans that were jumping in a bid to tear him down from the wall. I imagined the terror on his face as the Female Titan approached, as she yanked him hard enough to rip the cords, shoved him into her mouth, biting him into pieces or maybe swallowing him whole, letting him swim in her stomach with the other humans she had recently devoured, likely in differing states of decay, until he died of shock, starvation, suffocation, or any number of things. In fact, I was unable to sleep for four days, and then I finally lost to my weakened body and fell unconscious. I couldn't be stirred for an entire day.

We all tried our best to get on with life after that. The topic was avoided in conversation, and everything of Eren's was locked away. Mikasa still wore his scarf though, and I kept the books he had managed to steal for me. I had always spent a lot of time reading, but after Eren, I became even more withdrawn, rarely leaving home in favor of losing myself in the fantasy world of one of my fairy tales, and always taking one of my books with me when I did. I still saw Mikasa regularly, but we had never been as close as Eren and I. I'm sure she felt the same way. But it was a mutual loss we had suffered, and so we made sure to check on each other occasionally, sometimes talking it out when the pain became too much for us to handle alone. As if required to by proxy, she looked after me in Eren's stead, fending off the bullies that still dared to mess with me. They grew few after Eren though, as most knew that he had been my closest and pretty much only friend, and they pitied my immensely. Still, there were a few heartless ones that persisted, some even using his sacrifice to taunt me. Mikasa made sure those ones went home with at least one broken bone each. But not only did she defend me, she was always ready to hold me should I need to cry, and I was always ready to listen to what she had to say. It was the best I could offer her, but it was plenty according to her. Mr. and Mrs. Jaeger refused to talk about Eren, and so she relied on me to converse about the good and bad times had with him.

I wondered how she had gotten so much stronger than me. I knew that she'd loved Eren, as more than a friend or a brother, and it was amazing how well she had taken his death. Granted, I wasn't with her all the time. Well, not much at all, actually. What she did when away from me... I had no way of knowing. I didn't really want to know. She could be frightening, if I thought about it, and so I didn't.

And eventually, with time to heal us, life fell into some semblance of normalcy. Eren was gone, and his absence lingered, almost more prominent than his presence had been, but I lived with it, getting by day by day. Mikasa did the same, pushing through, forcing herself to get up every morning. Mrs. Jaeger, however, did not. We lost her a few months after Eren's sacrifice. We never found a body, but we can all guess what happened. A couple of soldiers reported seeing a figure slinking around the gate as they were shutting it for the night, too small to be a Titan that had breached the wall. But they were too spooked to check it out, and too cowardly to bring it up until news of Carla's disappearance made it onto the billboard in the town square.

No one said it outright, but there was an unspoken acceptance of what had happened. Grisha disappeared a couple of weeks after Carla, though it seemed less likely that he had met the same fate, as no one had seen any trace of him, and he took several belongings with him. Mikasa came to stay with my Grandfather and I, settling into half of my room quietly. She didn't speak to me much, and I didn't bother trying to start conversation either. We simply slept and woke, as we did every day, trying to find distraction as we lived each day. I would read endlessly, sometimes staring out of the window and writing my own stories inside of my head, ones where Eren wasn't sacrificed, and Mrs. Jaeger didn't leave the protection of the walls in a frenzied bid to meet the same fate as her son, and Mr. Jaeger didn't disappear, and Mikasa still spoke, and I still smiled. I wove tales of oceans, unseen before, but breathtaking in my imaginings, witnessed hand in hand with my lost friend. Mikasa sat quietly, or went for day-long walks, returning late at night and very sweaty. I didn't ask, and she never told.

Ironically, the year of Eren Jaeger's sacrifice was one of the bloodiest in our history. We lost more of the population than usual, the Titans managing to break through our walls a total of eight times in twelve months. The avidly religious blamed it on the gender of the Titan, claiming that the female had muddied their sacred practise. But nobody really cared, not when there were Titans running amok in the town, picking people up and eating them with leisure. When Mikasa and I ran for the shelters, hand in hand, it was halfhearted, not nearly as fast as we could run if we were really trying to escape, because we weren't really trying to escape, not anymore.

A/N: I'm sure you saw this coming, but I thought I should mention that this is my first time writing for this fandom. I'd appreciate it if all of you lovely readers could refrain from totally destroying me for my feeble attempt. It's going to take me a while to figure out these characters, as I've never written them before. But I'll get the hang of it, sooner or later, if you'll just let me feel everyone out.  
Anyway, this idea wouldn't let me rest until I wrote it. It just seemed like such a good one to me, but now that I have this bit written, I feel pretty terrible. Like, what am I doing, making their lives even _worse_ than they already are? I guess that's what I'm here for though, making everyone miserable, one fanfic at a time. This is a pretty drastic step outside of my normal niche though. I'm not sure if anyone reading this is aware, but I'm known for my SuFin stories. (From Hetalia.) So, basically, I went from one of the fluffiest, domesticy couples on earth, to this monstrosity. But I knew this would happen as soon as I watched the first episode.

Alright, just to make some things clear before anyone gets in too deep: This story is going to EreMin-centric. That's not to say that I don't like EreRi, but I definitely like EreMin more. There's a lot more relationship there, less 'oooh, possible BDSM, tasty.' It's a lot of little things, like Armin holding his hand that one time, and [POSSIBLE SPOILER, if you haven't watched much of the anime] always being the one that gets through to him, even when he's in titan form. Not even Mikasa could do that. I think that says a lot. Plus, hand holding in this show is like the equivalent of fourth base. I mean really, does anyone actually believe any of these guys (or gals) is getting any serious action? Pffft.

Okei, I'd also like to note that there are going to be a few things mentioned that will spoil it for you if you aren't caught up with the anime. So long as you have seen all of the anime episodes, nothing should come as too much of a shock. But don't come crying to me a few chapters down the road if you didn't know about certain things, for I warned you ahead of time.  
There are going to be some side pairings, I'm sure, but I don't know exactly they are going to be just yet. It's all going to depend on what happens, and what would make sense. But I'll just go ahead and list any that MIGHT appear. Jean/Marco, Ymir/Krista, Reiner/Bertholdt. If these do appear, it will likely be very subtly. First off, they are not the main characters of my story, and not every relationship has to be sexual. But I do support Jean and Marco, pretty hardcore. It's a problem I have. Anywho...

I'd also like to mention that I'm one of those authors that has a hectic update schedule. I'm going to apologize in advance for that. I try to get stuff done as quickly as possible, but you know how life can be. Be patient, I beg.

If anyone is still on board, then I hope to see you in chapter two, which should be longer. This was just to introduce you to a slightly altered universe, and set the plot in motion. For those of you who are serious fans, you might be able to pick out where the anime crosses over with my story. I'm doing that on purpose, and you get some points if you can find them! These points are non-redeemable, and absolutely worthless, but fun to collect nonetheless.  
Please, let me know how I'm doing, as this is a whole new world for me. I need to know if my little idea is worth pursuing! Regardless, thank you for reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! Er, that might not be the best word... I hope you were moved emotionally in a positively negative way? Yeah, okei, there is no good way to say it, so I'll just say thank you, and I hope you found it interesting.

KuroRiya  
九六りや


	2. Chapter 2

Three years passed me by rather uneventfully. I thought of Eren often, but I rarely cried about it anymore. But when the annual sacrifice came around, though I tried to avoid it in any way I could, I would eventually break down, sobbing into my pillows until I fell asleep, ignoring the ceremony in favor of passing the time blissfully unconscious. I usually dreamt of Eren on those days though, and several afterward, making it a pretty difficult time for me. But all in all, I was living to the best of my ability.

My grandfather was forced to go out on a food-gathering expedition, outside of the walls. I knew that those sent out were being sent to their deaths. There wasn't much food to gather in the first place. It was just a way to cover up a mass extermination. If you tried to call a soldier out on it, they would claim it was necessary, claim that there were too many mouths to feed and not enough food to feed them. I lost my grandfather, his name among the countless that weren't called as less than a hundred returned, a few roots in their hands. It was hard, but I put it from my mind, reasoning that at least he could rest his old soul now.  
Mikasa and I had abandoned our goal of joining the military after Eren. The only reason we were going was to remain close to him, and with him gone, there was no point. I instead found a job in a small tavern, Mikasa finding work with a seamstress. Her mother, before dying, had apparently taught her a special kind of Asian embroidery, which was a quick selling point with the seamstress.

My work was hard, and didn't pay much. I knew I'd get paid more if I was a girl; A lot of the guys that came in would whistle my way and shout vulgar flirtations until one of the regulars informed them of my gender, then they'd shut up, or yell at me for being so scrawny. I rarely got tips. A few of the regulars began to warm up to me after a while though, and they tended to be a bit more generous than others. Still not much, but it was a job, and it payed enough for me to eat daily, more than a lot of people could say. With Mikasa's income as well, I was even able to save up and buy myself a new book on occasion.

There were better things I could have spent the money on, but I wanted books more than I wanted a new pair of trousers. Mikasa never said anything about it either. I think she knew that books were my only form of retreat, my only true comfort left in this world. Instead of urging me to buy new clothes, she would mend my old ones until they couldn't be worn anymore. It was something small, but I was grateful for her understanding.

In return for her repairing my clothes, I usually did the cooking. We were both tired when we got home, but her fingers were suffering from her constant and technical use of them. Though my arms would be sore from lifting drinks and carrying trays, it was nothing compared to her poor digits. She would soak them in water that I warmed on the stove, and I'd help her stretch them, her knuckles cracking as I bent them at the joints. She'd bite her lip as we went through this, obviously in pain, but she never complained. I knew though, from the stiffness, that it would be hard for her to do much of anything, so I would prepare our dinner. Sometimes, when there were leftovers from the tavern, I'd pack them up and take them home, eating that for dinner instead, saving us both the trouble.

It was miserable, tiring, and hardly worth calling living, but it was what I had left after I lost Eren.

But even that was taken away from me, in the harshest, most ironic way possible. It must have been one of the guys from the bar that mentioned me. How he managed to get the attention of the church, I'd never know. I didn't get the chance to ask around, as the day they came for me was my last day of freedom inside of the walls.

Unlike Eren's capture, I didn't struggle. I knew exactly what the men clad in uniform had come for, as soon as I saw the number of them. I knew it was me. I had asked myself, many times over the three years, why it hadn't been me they sacrificed instead of Eren. I knew I was small, my bookish nature leaving me with a suitable body, frail and skinny. And, unlike Eren, who likely would have gained quite a bit of muscle if given proper time and training, I hadn't grown out of my lankiness, and it was unlikely I ever would.

People stared as I was pulled along, the tight grasp of a soldier on either of my arms, preventing my escape should I attempt to make one. It was rare that the sacrifice didn't struggle, at least at first. Some accepted it while they were being held, others, like Eren, fighting to the end. But I was too tired, too broken to fight it. And I had seen it coming, had been expecting it for years now.

Eventually someone told Mikasa, and since I had come so quietly, she was allowed to visit me the day after I was taken. She was as calm and quiet as she ever was, bringing me food that the tavern had donated to her. I supposed they felt bad for me, but it was wasted breath on their part. I wasn't remorseful, not even scared. I asked Mikasa to bring me my books, naming my favorite ones, telling her where she could find them. She obediently left, returning about an hour later with a stack of books in her arms, slipping them through the bars one at a time so that I could stack them on the small desk that was inside of my cell. She lingered, and I knew it was out of consideration for me, but I shooed her off. I didn't really need her there. Though we relied on one another to get by, we weren't really close, and our friendship was only such in name. We rarely even spoke to each other anymore, both of us too scarred, our minds and souls torn asunder. She left without any argument.

I passed my last few days by reading, almost constantly, rarely sleeping, only pausing otherwise to use the bathroom and eat. I knew when my last day came around because of the way the guards were acting. They were overly kind to me, my meal consisting of many things considered rare these days; meat, and even a bit of cake. It was good, and I ate without protest, but the gesture seemed petty to me. I felt like livestock, a pig being fed well right before being sent in for slaughter. I wondered if my dying cries would be as graceless and piercing as those of a butchered sow.  
Mikasa visited, as she did every day to bring me dinner. Though she didn't have enough money for meat or cake, she brought me a bit of candy. I smiled as she handed me the small bag, knowing something sweet must be inside. I waited till she left to open it, dumping the contents onto my desk. Each piece fell with a small clinking sound, familiar from the days long past, when my mother would buy me candy if she had a bit of spare money.

The candy that fell was simple, just rock candy, hardened sugar. But it was nostalgic, a treat that Eren often shared with me, as his mother had a knack for making it. He'd always inform me, his excitement obvious, when his mother started the process, the promise of candy in a few days enough to have both he and I eagerly helping Carla around the house. After all, the more we helped, the more she let us have. Sometimes she'd even let us add some flavor, if she had any fruit around. My favorite was strawberry, but it was rare that they, or anyone, had any, so I'd usually settle for whatever Eren was in the mood for. He preferred citrus flavors, like oranges and limes.

The pieces were a mixture of pink and green, which meant it was probably strawberry and lime. I guess Mikasa really did still care, if she had thought to bring me these particular flavors. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I don't really believe in those. I debated on whether or not I should eat them immediately, or if I should save them for another time, but then I realised, with a shaky breath, that there wouldn't be another time. I almost laughed at myself for having entertained the idea of hording the treat, picking up one of the green pieces and bringing it to my mouth.

It was sweet, with the slightest aftertaste, definitely lime. The flavoring was more obvious that it was when Carla made it, confirming my guess that it was store bought. But it didn't matter, it was the thought that counted. I sucked on it, as I always did, savoring the flavor as it dissolved in my mouth. Eren always bit into his quickly, chewing it into a fine powder before swallowing, then he'd steal pieces from my share without asking, much to my chagrin. Now I wished I had shared more with him, sacrificed a few moments of sugary bliss to make him happy. It didn't matter now though, it was too late for that.

I didn't even realise I was crying until a drop hit my hand, startling me. I looked up, thinking at first that the ceiling was leaking, perhaps from rain outside. But I saw no indication that the ceiling was dripping. Shocked, I touched a hand to my cheek, feeling the moisture there, many droplets gathered underneath my chin. I blinked slowly, feeling more slip past my lids with each movement. They came steadily for several seconds before I finally accepted that I was crying, my frame shaking with a sob I hadn't known I was holding in. But once the first came, countless followed. The guards were silent, not yelling at me to shut up or saying any sympathetic words. I appreciated the gesture.

In the end, I was unable to eat all of the candy in one go, making myself sick in my attempt. Frowning, I shoveled it back into the bag, slipping it into my pocket. It was pointless, I knew I wouldn't have another chance to eat it, but leaving it seemed just as wasteful. At least this way, when I was eaten by a Titan, it would end up in a stomach, even if not in the one it was intended for.

I didn't sleep that night, electing instead to stay up, reading by candle light. Again, the guards raised no complaints, providing me with more candles when mine burned out. Nobody needed to know that I was switching the names of the characters in my mind, giving Eren a happy ending, myself a happy ending. When the guards switched shifts, the day guards relieving the night guards, I switched books. These were my last couple of hours, and I wanted to spend them reading my favorite book. It was a scientific journal, one that detailed unimaginable places and things. Vast fields of nothing but sand, land that was so cold that the snow never melted, animals that somehow survived in these harsh conditions. But the most fascinating, the most breathtaking thing noted in the book was the vast ocean, a body of water so large it apparently took up the majority of our earth. I doubted that could be true, but still I wanted to see it, the unending blue in all directions, feel the waves lapping at my feet. I wanted to smell the brisk air, tinged with the smells of fish and sea-greenery. I wanted to hear the crashing of the water as it crested and fell, wanted to taste the salt in the moist air. It was my dream, one I projected onto and eventually shared with Eren.

But it died with him, and now again with me.

I read, imagining the birds that flew almost exclusively around the sea, the colorful and strange fish that swam the salty waters, some not even looking like fish at all. So engrossed in my daydreaming was I that the guard had to shake me before I realised that he was inside of my cell, dragging me out. I stumbled at first, but gained my footing and followed him quietly, sparing one last glance to the books I was leaving behind. They were precious to me, but I would have no use for them while I was dangling from the wall. I hoped, at least, they could offer comfort to whoever was next, as they had for me my whole life.

Again, the hands that held my arms were rough, needlessly tight, but I didn't bother raising protest, I knew it would fall on deaf ears anyway. The town was mostly silent, the majority of the population likely already gathered at the wall, waiting to watch my sacrifice as they had Eren's. I could hear the roar of countless voices talking at once, growing louder as I neared, then falling silent when I made it to the very edge of the square. They all held a breath, looking in my direction, differing emotions playing across too many faces for me to count.  
I was marched down the center, just as Eren had been, similar gestures of encouragement shouted my way as I passed. I bit my lip to keep from yelling back at them, pointing out how stupid, how wrong they were. What honor was there in dying a pointless death, bound and unable to even cause damage as you went? No. I was naught but bait, my body pierced through with hooks of tradition and fear, lowered teasingly into the water, fishing for the biggest prize. To them, I wasn't even human anymore, I was a scape goat, an expendable one of many, a way to ease their minds, to give a fake sense of security as they blindly followed a wolf, dressed like a Shepard and herding them expertly into further stupidity.

When I made it to the front of the crowd, as close to the wall as they were allowed, the soldiers paused. It was more of an insult than a gift. I had no family left. My mother and father, presumably, died when they attempted to explore outside the wall. My grandfather was lost similarly, though his expedition was forced. And Eren, my closest friend, my only friend, was sacrificed, in this exact place, in the exact same way, three years prior. Mikasa alone stood at the front, exchanging glances with me, then lowering her head. It wasn't sorrow, it wasn't pity, just acceptance.

After seeing that I had no relatives to part ways with, no one to embrace for the last time, the guards surged forward, reaching a pile of cords. They made quick work of tying them around me, their work just as sloppy as ever. It didn't really matter, I'd meet the same fate regardless of how well the knots held. Once I was adequately bound, they each grabbed one end of cord, shooting their hooks into the wall and dragging me up, their gear squealing with the effort. But we reached the top nonetheless. The cords were too heavy for me to stand up, so I let myself fall to my knees, opening my eyes and taking in the sight. I'd never seen beyond the walls, never knew what was just barely out of my grasp. It was beautiful, the sun about three quarters through its cycle, bathing everything in soft sunshine. The trees, the birds, the nearby lake, everything shining and sparkling.

Again, I was not aware of my tears, only alerted to them when enough fell to saturate my pants. I bit my lip, too hard, drawing blood, trying not to let the sobs come this time. There would be time for crying. The least I could do was hold my head high, my facade of courage in tact for those watching me. Thankfully, the soldiers had finished with their speeches and anchoring, and it was time.

Instead of the previous two, four soldiers came, two on each side, just in case. They moved slowly, lowering me inch by inch. I sucked in a breath, not fighting the motion, letting my body relax against the cord that was biting into my flesh, my skin already aching from it. If I was allowed time to heal, I'd likely be several shades of purple, and then fading yellow, for at least a month. But my body probably wouldn't even have time to bruise, let alone heal.

I was surprised for a moment by the lack of Titans, not having seen any from the top of the wall. Of course, as soon as the thought crossed my mind, I heard it. Footsteps, heavy, but not enough that those on the other side would be able to hear. It came from the trees, its head large in proportion to its limbs, yet it walked with ease. I couldn't be called the best judge, but I guess that it was probably about six metres tall. It stared up at me, its eyes staring intently, yet without focus. Though it clawed at the wall and made a few attempts to climb it, it was nowhere near tall enough to reach me. I sighed, putting that one from my mind. I could hear another approaching, this one given away by the noises it made with its throat as opposed to its feet.

I whimpered as this one came into view, finding its four legged posture particularly disturbing. It too clawed at the wall, but actually made a jump for me. I couldn't muffle the scream, truly startled by the sudden movement. And it got pretty close, its fingers only a couple of metres away from my dangling legs, or so it seemed to me. Finally the fear began to set in. I realised where I was, what was happening, all much too late. Even if I could get out of my bindings, I'd simply fall right into the open mouths of the Titans. I was helpless, choiceless, about to meet what was likely the most gruesome fate this world could offer. One that my friend before me had met.

I shuddered. It was one last thing we could share.

More Titans gathered, each attempting to reach me, all unable. Still, I'd cry out with each leap, every one seeming closer than the last. And yet, as insane as I must have been to think it, I wished it would all just be over. This was torture, slow, painful, terrifying. I'd rather just get it over with, be done with it all.  
Another emerged from the trees, this one a bit bigger, its grey hair long and growing into its beard. It stood out thanks to the extensive facial hair. This one didn't even bother with clawing at the wall, jumping for me immediately. It was just barely, but I felt the tip of its finger tap against the bottom of my foot, sending shivers down my spine as I screamed. It didn't hesitate to try again, this time getting high enough that I was pushed upwards a bit when it touched my foot. I tried to curl my legs under me, but the cords were wrapped too tightly around my pelvis and thighs, I could barely move them at all. In its second attempt, the bearded Titan knocked another over. It landed on the fallen one, not bothering to move to avoid stepping on it as it got up. My eyes widened, realising that, with that extra bit of height, it was probably going to be able to reach me with its next jump.

My body acted against my will, thrashing against the cords, trying to pull myself up, trying to claw through the ones around my legs, anything I could, but to no avail. And it was too late, the Titan already airborne yet again. Just as I had guessed, the extra height was enough that it managed to wrap its fingers around one of my legs, but only that. It fell again, unable to yank the cords apart. But it had tried to hold on, and I screeched as my leg broke in several places before it let go, falling entirely limp beneath me. Every time I hit the wall from the swinging motion induced by the Titan having grabbed at me, I howled, the pain more than I'd ever experienced. I couldn't even see anymore, though I knew my eyes were open. All I could see was white.

Eventually my body stopped swinging, and my cries were reduced to whimpers as I stilled. My vision cleared, and I looked down, finding the bearded one staring back at me, as if it was waiting for me to recover. A chill ran through me. Another Titan fell, knocked over as a larger one tried to shove its way closer to me. It fell on top of the other that had been crushed by the bearded Titan. My breath hitched. It was over, it had me. This one was definitely aberrant, it would climb on top of the other two, jump, and pull me down. I couldn't close my eyes, fixated on the Titan, doing exactly as I had imagined. I could only watch, hold my breath, as it leapt, its hands finally wrapping around me properly. Gravity pulled it down, its weight easily snapping the cords holding me up, and I fell with it.

We hit the ground with a loud thump, the ground shaking. It wasn't as bad as I would have estimated though, the theory about Titans being lighter than they should be surfacing in my mind briefly. It took a few seconds for the Titan to right itself, but it turned me to face it once it had. I wailed, the motion having moved my injured leg. Or maybe I was wailing from the fear of the creature that was about to devour me. I wondered if there would be other bodies inside, if I'd be alive to see them. Some Titans swallowed their food whole, others chewed. I couldn't decide which I'd prefer. It would be faster to be ripped apart, eaten limb by limb, and I wouldn't have to see what was inside of its stomach. But it would probably be a lot more painful. Even worse, what if it bit off pieces of me, but left enough that I'd remain for a few hours?

I chocked on a sob, wishing I had any other options, but I knew there were none. At least, I thought, it was almost over. The Titan raised me, holding me between its thumb and forefinger by my shirt as if I was a simple finger food. It began to open its mouth, but suddenly its mouth was gone. Its whole head was gone, replaced by vast nothingness, blood starting to leak from its neck, now naught but a severed bone and muscle. I screeched, trying to wrench myself from the now dead fingers without much luck. The gore was too much, and I vomited, most of it falling on the Titan's body. All the while, my eyes were snapping around, trying to figure out what had happened. I knew that the soldiers wouldn't have come to my rescue, but that left only another Titan as a possible culprit, and I'd never heard of a Titan attacking another.

I looked at all of the Titans surrounding me, none of them even big enough to have reached the Titan's head. But I was overlooked something, something pretty obvious. It was just so big, my mind didn't register it at first. But when I heard the snorting breath, coming from above, I immediately looked up.

It was too tall, I couldn't see its face. It had to be a fourteen or fifteen metre. Its proportions were practically human, though it was heavily muscled, pinning it as the most likely to have killed the bearded one.

I trembled, trapped by the fingers around me, unable to flee as its hand came down, plucking me out of my fleshy prison with ease, holding me with the same fingers, thumb and pointer. But instead of holding my up by the back of my shirt, this one situated its fingers under my arms. Better leverage, I reasoned. It lifted me up, its face slowly coming into focus as I neared.

This one's face was different than what I normally saw, but not really anymore disturbing. Its seemed to have double the amount of teeth, all of them exposed by a lack of lips. Its ears were pointed, but other than that, it looked mostly human. Its hair was longer than most Titans', falling to its shoulders in dark chocolate colored tresses. I frowned, the color reminiscent of Eren's. It brought me level to its eyes, the same piercing color of emerald as Eren too. I wondered if this was some kind of joke, a cruel one played by the fates. Sending a Titan that shared qualities with Eren to finish the job of eating me? It was twisted in a way I couldn't find words for.

It stared at me, its gaze intense. It only broke eye contact when another Titan leapt and tried to grab me from its hands. Though the one that had tried was much too small, not managing to jump anywhere near high enough, the fifteen metre turned its way and growled, screamed at it. I whimpered, unable to ignore the fear that rose in my stomach at the sound. It was such a powerful noise, shaking the surroundings as it bellowed out. It sounded like an alarm, a warning. The other Titans, much to my surprise, backed off.

And it returned to staring at me. I wondered what the soldiers would be telling the crowd. Surely I must be considered the strangest sacrifice so far. Not only had the bearded Titan shown a small level of intelligence by climbing on the bodies of the fallen Titans to reach me, but the fifteen metre had _killed_ another Titan, with purpose. Perhaps it was the same old purpose, to eat a human, but it showed precision, skill, having loped off the head as opposed to just the hand. It meant to kill with its strike.

And, even stranger still, it hadn't eaten me yet. I was frozen, unable to move, to break the stare it was holding with me. I noticed, with a start, how completely focused it was. Unlike the other Titans, who saw, but never really looked... This one was looking. It was seeing me, taking in my traits, holding my gaze with its own. My lips trembled, and it snorted, blinking once. This one was intelligent, I could tell, I could _feel_ it. It knew what it was doing, had a goal in mind, had a mind. It recognized me as a living thing, knew that I had feelings, emotions. And that made it just that much scarier.

It drew me closer, very slowly, and I realised that it was trying not to jostle my leg, which was pretty obviously broken. What was the point, I had to ask myself, if it was just going to eat me anyway? Not that I was complaining, but I couldn't see the sense of it. It spared me one last glance, then opened its mouth, which was especially large thanks to the extra teeth. I closed my eyes, feeling the hot breath as I came closer and closer, my hair fanning out behind me from the velocity. And then it dropped me, my body falling a couple of feet onto its tongue, a cry wracking out of me as my injured leg broke my fall. I opened my eyes, looking outwards, getting one last glimpse of the sky before it closed its mouth and everything went dark.

A/N: Well, not a huge response, but enough that I went ahead with a second chapter. That was actually really fast for me... I usually schmooze around and ignore the next chapter for a while, and even when I do start, it usually takes me a couple of days to finish. But I guess I really like this idea I've had, and want to get going, because this was literally a two day chapter. (It would have been one day, but it was like, three in the morning. I had work the next day, and I'm only human.)  
As promised, this chapter is a bit longer, by about two pages. This is about normal chapter length for me, so get used to it! Sometimes they'll get a little longer though, if a scene is taking a long time to wrap up.

So, sorry for the three year gap. I'm sure there are going to be some people who wish they could see what life for Armin was like without Eren, but it wasn't really important to the story. All you need to know is that he was miserable, but managing. And sorry for those who, like, hardcore support Eren, Armin, and Mikasa as besties forever. I don't really like Mikasa, and I don't like her dynamic in the relationship. It seems to me that she kind of forces herself in, only serving as an overly protective sister for Eren. She doesn't seem to care for Armin at all, only helping him in the first episode because she was worried Eren was about to get in a fight. So that's why she seemed so standoffish with Armin in this; I feel like that's how she would be without Eren.  
I'm not trying to start a fight, and I'm not going to argue with anyone who disagrees. I know that different people have different thoughts on it. But this is how it is in my story, so if you plan to keep reading, you'll have to get used to it for the time being. Not to worry though, she won't be in the story much at all from now on. Many things have changed, if you haven't noticed!

Okei, I'm off to write some more, or maybe sleep. Who knows with me anymore. In any case, thank you for reading, and please let me know what you think.

KuroRiya  
九六りや


	3. Chapter 3

I'd always heard that Titans had unnaturally high body temperatures, but I never imagined it could be this bad. Maybe part of it was the hot breath coming from its throat every time it exhaled, but I felt like I'd been thrown into the brick oven, left to bake like a bit of game. And it was so wet inside of its mouth, not that I could tell if I was wet from its saliva or my own sweat, perhaps a mixture of both. But that was the thing; I was still inside of its mouth. It had made no move to chew or swallow me.

I couldn't fathom a reasoning behind this. I'd never seen a Titan, aberrant or not, that hesitated where food was involved. Maybe it was treating me as I did hard candies, enjoying the flavor before swallowing me? I wondered if I really tasted that good, and couldn't imagine that I did, especially as sweaty as I must have been. I humored the thought that maybe it intended to feed me to another Titan, like birds did with their young. But, as far as we knew, Titans had no reproductive organs, and it would therefore be impossible for them to have offspring. But that only left one theory, and the thought was a little too strange for me to believe it.

Maybe it really didn't plan on eating me at all. It was insane, and I knew it, but it was the only thing I could come up with. Yet, I had to wonder, if it didn't want to eat me, why fight the bearded Titan in the first place? And if it wasn't going to eat me, then what did it plan to do with me? If it just spat me out, I'd either die from the fall, or get eaten by another Titan that stumbled across me. Or maybe it would save me for later? It was unheard of, but not entirely impossible. This one, after all, had proven intelligent. But the Titans didn't have any digestive organs, so it didn't really need to save food for later. If it did, it would be more out of cruelty than necessity. It didn't matter though, I was dead even if it didn't eat me immediately, one way or another. It was just being prolonged.

I let out a loud whimper as I was jostled, my broken leg hurting enough that I was considering crawling into its stomach myself and getting it over with. The Titan was running, its head bobbing with the motion. It was amazing how gentle it was, actually, considering its size. But I could imagine the ground shuddering as it traveled, how the buildings would tremble if it made it past the walls. I had to remind myself that what happened inside of the walls was no longer of my concern. To them, I was dead, a lucky sacrifice to have been eaten by a fifteen metre.

It seemed like an eternity before it ceased its running. I shook, anticipating whatever was about to happen, my stomach sinking with the thought that maybe it had stopped in order to eat me at last. Maybe it just didn't like being watched as it ate, and had been running to escape the eyes of the other Titans? But it had been running an awful long time, surely it had covered miles by then, much further than would have been necessary for privacy. For the first time since it had dropped me into its mouth, its tongue lurched, and I wailed, both from pain and from fear. But instead of tipping its head back and swallowing me, or crushing me against the roof of its mouth, it opened its jaws, sticking its tongue, and me, out.

I tried to crawl away as its fingers came up, obviously intent on plucking me out of its mouth. I wasn't sure which was scarier, staying in its mouth, or being picked up again. I didn't get a lot of choice in the matter though, as my leg left me unable to get away fast enough, and it grabbed me, lifting me up and away. Again, after pulling me out of its mouth, it righted me, holding me underneath my arms, bringing me up to eye level. I looked around quickly, making note of the lack of other Titans, and relaxed a little. At least I only had one to worry about, and it wasn't making any move to harm me.

And so we returned to staring. My confusion was immense, but I could tell that it wanted me to understand something. Its eyes were almost pleading, but still intense. I frowned, wishing I could talk to it, to ask it what it wanted from me, why it hadn't eaten me, why it was so freaking different from anything I'd ever been taught. I realised that I actually hadn't tried. Nobody bothered with trying to communicate anymore, as no Titan had ever shown a reaction to it. But this one was different from the others, so who was to say that speaking to it was a worthless pursuit? I pursed my lips, clearing my throat before I began.

"Um, can you... Can you understand me?" I asked, my voice shaky. But I guess it was loud enough, for it reacted, closing its eyes and snorting through its nose. My eyes widened, my breath hitching in my throat. It could have been coincidental timing, but like I've mentioned before, I don't believe in coincidences.

"R-Really?" I asked, eliciting the same reaction. All I could manage to do was gape at it stupidly. Any other time, I'd have been angry at myself. Here I was talking to a Titan, a Titan that apparently understood me. Nothing like this had ever happened before, it was a scientific goldmine, but all I could do was stare at it dumbly. Granted, I doubt anyone would know quite what to do in that situation. Thankfully, it gave me some time to collect my thoughts, waiting patiently as I put it all together.

"Alright, well... Why haven't you eaten me yet?" I wondered. It made a sighing sound, and I realised I'd have to stick to yes and no questions. "Right, okay, I'll rephrase. Are you going to eat me?"

I wasn't sure if I actually wanted the answer, and I dreaded it, but to my amazement, it shook its head. Again, my breathing hitched, caught in my throat. It could be lying, trying to get me to relax so it would be easier to eat me or something. I simply couldn't fathom the idea that a Titan wanted anything to do with humans if it wasn't eating them. But it hadn't devoured me yet, so I decided to give it a little of my trust, at least for the time being. I didn't have a lot of other options anyway.

"Wow. Um, sorry, I've never talked to a Titan before." I admitted. It rolled its eyes, and I almost laughed, the gesture looking ridiculous on such a terrifying creature. And it was such a human thing to do, I never imagined I'd see it performed by a Titan. I could practically hear it saying "and I've never talked to a Human before, obviously." The voice I gave it in my imagination was oddly familiar.

"So, if you aren't going to eat me, what are you going to do?" I asked. "Are you going to feed me to other Titans?" I continued, shuddering at the thought. It shook its head, and I sighed with relief. "I guess that's good. But just to clear things up, there are no plans of me being eaten by anything in the near future, right?" I questioned, wanting the clarification. It shook its head. I finally let my tense muscles relax, sighing as my body slumped.

"That's great." I admitted. "But I won't survive long if you just leave me somewhere. I'd be a sitting duck anyway, but with this leg I can't even try to run away." I pointed out. "I guess you could take me back to the wall, and leave me there?" I suggested hopefully. It growled a bit, shaking its head. I frowned.

"Well what do you plan on doing with me, if not taking me back to... Oh." I trailed, realising that going back to the wall would be a very stupid mistake to make. It'd be impossible for me to get back inside without assistance, and no one in their right mind would let me go by unreported. I'd been supposedly eaten by a Titan, the annual sacrifice! They'd ask my thousands of questions, and when I couldn't answer them, they'd probably either run experiments on me to see how it is I managed to repel a Titan, or I'd be executed, seen as a traitor to my race for not accepting my death with grace. Or worse even than that, I'd be resacrificed.

"Yeah, okay, that was a bad idea I guess. But then what..." I sighed, knowing it wouldn't be able to answer me. "I guess I'll just have to go along with whatever you decide to do. I don't really have much of a choice in the matter." I trailed. The Titan let out another snort, then began lowering itself, sitting on the ground with a thud. I guess it was tired of holding me up too, for it sat me in its other palm, putting me down as carefully as it could. I still cried out, but it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

I had to catch my breath, the pain having winded me. It looked a bit apologetic, which really threw me off, normal Titans expressing few if any emotions. To be honest, it wasn't a big difference. Its brows were kind of permanently down-turned, making it look furious at all times. But I picked up on a sense of remorse. It was strange, how easily I had adjusted to this communication thing. I guess that might have been a result of the nervousness. But I couldn't feel any malice coming from it, so I was able to relax at least a little, resting my back against its fingers, which were curled just a bit. I thought to myself for a while, wondering what I should ask it next.

"Oh, I guess I should ask. You look pretty male, but do Titan's actually have genders?" This received a nod. I wasn't sure to which question that was the answer to, both I guessed. At least I could think of it as a him with confidence now.

"Alright then. So, what's up with this? Why are you so much smarter than other Titans?" I wondered aloud. It made a sound akin to one I'd make if I was annoyed. "Sorry, I was just thinking out loud. I know you can't answer." I offered. Then I blanched, realising I'd just apologized to a Titan, of all things. It felt wrong, speaking so leisurely with something I'd considered the enemy my whole life. But, at the same time, it felt really familiar, as if I'd spoken with him before, as if I'd known him long ago, but the memory was just too far for me to really remember it. But, again, that was impossible.

"So, are we just going to sit here talking? Not that I have anything better to do, but..." I began, but yelped as he used one of the fingers behind me to nudge me forward. I was scared by it at first, but realised that it hadn't brought any harm to me. It had been akin to a friendly shove. Eren used to do that when I was being sarcastic. I looked back up into his green eyes, the color of grass that poked through the cobblestone in the town, staring at me just as seriously.  
"Why did you save me?" I questioned, clicking my tongue when I realised that he wouldn't be able to answer that one either. His lack of proper vocal cords was frustrating. I wanted real answers, playing this guessing game was infuriating. But instead of giving me another annoyed sound, he opened his mouth, making a few noises before he gave up with a huff. It was another thing he shared with Eren. When I used to explain what I'd learn from a book to Eren, listing off countless scientific words as if they were commonplace, he'd get really frustrated if he couldn't say them as well. He'd try sounding them out a few times, then get fed up and pout about it for a while.

"You remind me of someone I knew." I announced, not having meant to say it at all, simply thinking aloud again. It couldn't hurt to mention it though. It's not like he had a grudge against Eren or anything, as far as I was aware, and I didn't have much else to talk about. But his eyes seemed to light up when I said it, his nostrils flaring as he snorted again.

"Uh, do I know you?" I asked stupidly, not sure what else the reaction could have meant. I could have punched myself for the near imbecilic thought. Of course I didn't know him! He was a Titan, for goodness sake! But he nodded, vigorously, his hand shaking a bit with what seemed to be excitement. I blinked, my eyes narrowing a bit. Sure, he seemed familiar, but when would I have met a Titan? And wouldn't I have remembered an encounter like that? Did that mean that Titans might start off small enough to live among humans? But we would notice such a large population disappearing, even if it was slowly over the years. The population was kept track of very strictly inside the walls, not a single person uncounted for. If someone went missing, it was documented. So that theory was out. But then...

It nodded again, drawing me closer to its face. I gasped, but refrained from flinching, knowing it would hurt, and wouldn't do any good. He brought me close enough that I could reach out and touch him, if I wanted to. I didn't dare though, opting instead to stare at him. Where did I know him from? He seemed convinced that he knew me, but the very idea of it was preposterous.

"Are you... Sure?" I questioned, receiving another nod, this one a bit more frantic. "Well... Would it have been recently that I met you?" I continued. He didn't respond to that one right away, looking to the side to show his indecision. I guess that the answer was pretty subjective.  
"One year ago?" I prompted. He shook his head.

"Two?" Again, negative. I sucked in a breath, looking at his emerald eyes, his dark hair, frowning, the familiarity now haunting. I knew that he looked like Eren, but it was only that. Just looks. Eren wasn't a Titan, I reminded myself. I'd known him my whole life, and he'd always been Eren. I mean, sure, the kid had a penchant for biting, but that didn't mean anything. I had a hard time getting the next number out.

"T-Three?" It came out naught but a whisper, but his head was nodding before I'd even said it. I chocked, emotions welling up. If this was a joke, it was sick. He opened his mouth again, making the same noises from before, but he didn't give up this time, persisting till he managed to say what he wanted to. It was mangled, and nearly incomprehensible, but it was my name.

"Eren?" I breathed, finally reaching a hand out, my arm shaking as I rested it against his cheek. He didn't nod this time, but he didn't need to. It wasn't really a question. Tears welled up in my eyes, blurring my vision, my fingers feeling the warmth of his skin. It explained so much; why he'd fought the bearded Titan for me, why he'd run from the area to escape the other Titans and the prying eyes of the soldiers on the wall, why he hadn't eaten me, why he looked so damn familiar. He reminded me of Eren because he _was _Eren. I trembled, moving as if to embrace him, to do anything to get closer, but my mangled leg made sure I regretted the action.

"How can this be?" I whimpered, my fingers curling against his cheek. He held still, letting me have my little moment. He couldn't do much, being as huge as he was, so the most comfort he could give me was to allow me to cry myself out. A thousand thoughts were racing through my mind, theories of how he'd come to have this form, another section of my brain devoting itself to sifting through my memories for any indicators I might have missed that Eren was a Titan this whole time. But I could only focus halfheartedly, too busy sobbing and mumbling nonsense into his cheek. For the first time in a long time, I was crying for something good, instead of something lost.

It took me a few minutes to calm down, my body thoroughly exhausted afterward. Eren pulled me back when I stopped sniffling, looking at me again. I smiled weakly, resting again against his fingers. Maybe I should have doubted it, should have assumed that this Titan was lying, trying to get my guard down. But I wanted to believe him, needed to believe him. I was so tired, so broken, and I needed something to cling to. And if this Titan said he was Eren, I'd be damned if I didn't believe him.

He tried to give me warning, looking from me to his shoulder twice before making a move, but I didn't comprehend what he was getting at until he started moving the hand that was holding me towards the shoulder. I put it together when he halted there, tipping his hand a bit. I sighed, bracing myself for the pain, then slid myself over, landing on his shoulder right where it met with his neck. I muffled my scream, not wanting to make him feel bad, but a small noise still came out. I didn't have time to dwell on the pain though, my hands reaching up to grasp at a lock of his hair, the fear of falling otherwise making my stomach lurch. I doubt Eren would have let me fall, but I was very high up, and he wasn't exactly a stationary seat.

He gave me a few seconds to adjust myself and made sure I was holding on before he stood again, walking away from the clearing he'd stopped at. He didn't run, as he had previously, likely trying to avoid knocking me off of his shoulder. My leg ached a bit as it swung limply below me, but it wasn't as bad as swinging from the cords against the wall had been. And I much preferred traveling this way than inside of his mouth.  
Once I grew accustomed to the new form of travel, I was able to relax a bit more, leaning my weight against his trapezius. If I'd been in better condition, I might have enjoyed the trip, being so high up. Despite a slight fear of heights, even I couldn't help but dream of flying. And, with the wind blowing through my hair, it was almost similar, if not cold thanks to my wet clothing. I didn't bother talking to him as he walked, knowing it would be difficult for him to respond without the use of speech. I used the time to think instead.

I wondered again when Eren had become a Titan, _how _he'd become a Titan. Had he always been like this? Was it something he switched between? Was this body permanent, or did he change from human to Titan? If so, was it at will, or was it triggered somehow? If Eren was like this, did that mean there were others? If there were, did I know any of them? Would I recognize them? It was unlikely, seeing as I'd failed to recognize Eren at first. Did Eren eat humans? He hadn't eaten me, but that didn't mean that he didn't eat others.

But I couldn't seem to make any of my questions matter. All that mattered was that Eren was alive, that he was here, that I was with him again. A fresh round of tears stung at my eyes, but I tried to keep these ones from falling. There would be time to think about this miracle later. For now, I just wanted to trust Eren, to feel safe again.

We covered a lot of ground, despite the slowed pace from before. As we walked, I started to notice the remnants of former civilizations, buildings erected before the Titans appeared, most in some state of moderate to severe ruin. Eren slowed as the buildings became more dense. I looked around, wondering if this is where we had been headed this entire time. But why would he bring me here? He was too large to occupy any of the buildings, so surely he didn't live here.

But as I was gazing around, taking in the destroyed town, my eyes fell on another Titan, this one also about fifteen metres, though it looked shorter than Eren, so maybe more like fourteen. I was a bit mortified by the lack of skin, its muscles showing, but not bleeding. Its hair was about the same color and length as mine, its eyes blue as well. However, as my eyes traced over it, I couldn't help but notice that this one was definitely female. That's all I really had the chance to register before it turned our way and began approaching. I whimpered, clamping onto the lock of hair tighter, scared that she meant to attack us. But Eren didn't move, didn't even tense. She came to a stop before him, and they made eye contact for a moment before she glanced at me, then back at Eren. After they stared at each other for a bit, she nodded, tilting her head backwards, a gesture I took to mean that we could proceed. As we passed, I remembered that the soldiers had claimed that Eren was eaten by a female Titan. Was this the one? Did that mean that she had saved him? I glanced back, but she had already looked away.

He walked deeper into the old town, the buildings looking to be in better repair the further in we got. And, to my surprise, I started seeing humans. I thought I was hallucinating at first, but sure enough, if I looked closely, I could see a few people strolling along below, paying Eren hardly any mind at all. I was appalled. I knew it was Eren, so I knew he wouldn't hurt me, but had these people lost all their sense? He could smash them in an instant, could pick them up and chew them to pieces!

But I started to notice that he was stepping very carefully, and it dawned on me that he was taking it so slowly as to avoid stepping on the people. But that, coupled with the peoples' lack of interest in him must mean that he did, in fact, live here. And I suppose that would mean that he didn't eat people, thank goodness. But I had to wonder where he called home, being as big as he was. I didn't see any buildings that would be large enough for him to fit inside, not even close.

He continued marching, finally coming to a stop in front of what seemed to be the largest building. It looked like it was once a grand castle, but it had fallen into mild disrepair. Still, it looked like humans could occupy it, and if the people filing out were any indication, they did. It was about ten people, all of them coming out to the topmost level of the castle that was still in tact. Eren lowered one of his hands down, one of the people stepping over the ledge and onto his palm. The hand came back up, bringing the person, a man, into view.

He was short, I realised, even shorter than me. But I could tell by his posture and face that he was older, and definitely stronger. He had a commanding air about him. And he, just as Eren had been, was vaguely familiar. I would have guessed that he was part of the military, if he wasn't out here in the middle of nowhere. Then again, he _did _have maneuver gear on. I racked my brain, searching my memories for his black hair and icy blue eyes. He didn't seem to notice me, looking at Eren, who nodded his head in my direction. His eyes then fell on me, and I froze, his scrutiny obvious on his face.

He looked back at Eren, nodding his head and jumping back to the castle, landing gracefully despite the distance. That's what made it click.

"C-Captian Levi!" I stuttered, but he couldn't have heard me from his position. Eren snorted though, affirming my identification. What would someone of his rank, of the military at all, be doing out here, conversing with a Titan as if it was commonplace? I had so many questions I wanted to ask, but knew it wasn't my place. If I got a chance, I'd ask Eren later. There was simply too much going on for me to even try to put a theory together in that moment.

Eren reached across his chest, holding his hand out for me, bringing it as close to me as he could. I gritted my teeth, dragging my weight over, biting my lip harshly against the pain, managing not to scream this time. Once he was sure I wouldn't fall, he lowered me toward the building, and when his hand lay flush with the floor, he opened his fingers. Several of the people that had gathered scurried onto his palm.  
One was allowed on first, a tall woman sporting glasses that were strapped to her head. She gave me a small smile before beginning to look me over, poking different parts of my body gently. I wanted to ask what she was doing, but I was scared; I didn't know who these people were, why they were here, or what they wanted. She had made it most of the way down my body, then poked the broken leg, earning a strangled cry from me in return. This brought a frown to her face.

"I figured something must be wrong for Eren to have carried you this far. Is it broken badly?" She questioned. My lip trembled, not sure if I should answer. I settled for just nodding, but that was enough for her. "Of course it is. But at least it's still there at all. It could have been ripped off. Poor Marco lost a leg and an arm. It's a miracle we managed to patch him up at all..." She trailed, talking to herself more so than me. I blinked at the familiar name, remembering two older boys, one tall, with freckles that had sometimes played with Eren, Mikasa and I. The other boy was named Jean, and he and Eren usually ended up butting heads. Marco would always drag his friend off, apologizing for his behavior. He'd been sacrificed the year before Eren, and I didn't see much of Jean after that. Surely she couldn't be talking about the same Marco.

She explained my condition to everyone gathered, and told them to be careful of the leg while they moved me. That didn't mean that it didn't hurt, but they did their best to favor it while they lifted me up and onto a stretcher. They started carrying me into the building, and I tried to look back over towards Eren, wanting some form of reassurance that this was okay, that they weren't going to do anything terrible to me, but he wasn't there anymore, to my dismay. All that remained where his fifteen metre body had been was a cloud of steam, dissipating as I was moved away from it.

A/N: I think this might be the last one I'll be able to get out before I go to Toronto for a Supernatural Convention. I'm leaving this Thursday, and I work every day till. So, what I'm saying is, the next chapter is going to be a little delayed, at least a week. (at LEAST). But I'm honestly surprised how fast I'm getting these chapters out. Usually it takes me ages to get a chapter written for my other stories, but I guess that this one just really holds my attention, and I just really want to get it written. I might get another one started before I go, but like I said, don't expect it till I get back.

I'd really like to thank everyone who has reviewed, or commented, or reblogged, or followed, or whatever it is you've done on whichever site. I have this posted in four places, so trying to keep it all straight is a bit cumbersome, but I love when my inbox is full of notifications for this story. The first chapter wasn't as much of a hit as the second, but I got quite a lot of encouragement once the second one was up. I'm so relieved that the SnK fandom hasn't eaten me just yet; I was really worried that I wasn't going to be able to write for this show. As I've mentioned before, I've been almost exclusively writing SuFin the past few years, so this was a huge step outside of my comfort zone. But I'm really glad I decided to write this, and thank goodness I had the courage to post it. I would have been missing out if I hadn't.  
As you can probably see, I've already hinted at the possibility of Marco. So I suppose it's safe to say that you can expect a side pairing of Jean and Marco to appear later on. I have some plans, trust me. I'm not sure if there will be any other big side pairings, but I'll try to mention them as they become official in my mind. But for now, we'll just let Armin freak out about everything. It's what he does best.

I have some explaining to do, but it'll have to wait till next time. I hope everyone is still interested enough to keep reading! Thank you for reading so far, and as I always say, you can never get too much feedback.

KuroRiya

九六りや


	4. Chapter 4

The woman who was giving me a checkup elicited a scream from me thrice before deciding that she'd have to administer some anesthesia before she could do any kind of good. I tried to hold my breath when she brought the bottle to my nose, but one can only hold their breath for so long. I didn't want to be put to sleep; there was too much for me to figure out. I didn't know where I was, who this woman was, where Eren had gone. Was I safe, were they going to take care of me? But I couldn't fight the chemicals as they wafted into my lungs, and I felt the world around me begin to fade into a fuzziness, slowly, teasing, as if I had a choice.

Another person entered the room, about the same height as me, maybe a little taller, I couldn't tell. His hair was dark, and I wondered if maybe it was Captain Levi. But no, he was shorter than me. I tried to focus my eyes, to look at his face. He turned it my way, and I saw the bright green of his eyes, the color enough for me to recognise him. But wasn't Eren a huge Titan? Was I hallucinating, maybe because of the anesthesia? It didn't matter; I reached my hand out, trying, in vain, to call his name. I knew it couldn't even remotely be close to the correct pronunciation, but I guess he heard me and understood, because the figure approached, and I could faintly feel fingers lacing with mine. That was all I was able to take note of before my consciousness faded, but it was enough to put me at ease.

When I came to, my aching leg was the first thing that surfaced into my awareness. It was dull, throbbing. It took me a moment to recall that it had been broken, and that someone had likely operated on it while I was out. Still, I didn't open my eyes. I was scared of what I'd see if I did. The possibilities were truly endless. I'd woken to many terrible things in my life. Instead, I let my other senses take in my surroundings. It was quiet, my breathing the only thing I picked up on immediately. But, as I listened, I could pick out another breathing pattern, just slightly dissonant with my own. That meant there was someone else in the room. With that knowledge, I was able to focus more specifically, and finally felt the pressure on my fingers. Someone was holding my hand, firmly, but with enough gentleness that it wasn't painful.

I opened my eyes at last, my curiosity getting the better of my good judgment. The ceiling came into view as I blinked into focus. It was grey, the entire room a bit dark, leading me to guess that it was likely evening time. That meant I'd been asleep for about five hours, if I was gauging the time correctly. Once I was sure my eyes were working properly, I shifted them, turning my head to the left, the side of the hand that was being held. My breath hitched as my gaze fell on Eren.

He was older now, of course, his body proportioned better and covered with a decent amount of lean muscle. Just as I'd guessed, Eren had grown into his lankiness. His hair was a bit longer than he used to keep it, but still cut in the same style, his bangs just barely brushing his brow and parted down the center. But despite the growth spurt, he was still Eren, unmistakeably. He'd heard my noise of surprise, and looked up at me, his eyes just as brilliant as they'd always been, and just as full of purpose, of hope and dreams. I wanted to ask him how he'd managed to keep his dreams alive, despite what had happened, wanted to ask how it was that he was before me, looking as he always did, when the last time I'd seen him he'd been fifteen metres tall, and dead even before that. I wanted to ask him how he'd known that I'd need saving that day, how he'd managed to get to me in time, how he'd let me believe he was dead all this time. But all that came out was a sob and a mangled cry of his name.

He smiled, just like he used to, a toothy grin.

"Hey Armin." He greeted, casually. He probably would have said something teasing if I hadn't shot upright and wrapped my arms around him, pulling him towards me. His voice was the same. I could hear a significant rasp, the remnant of puberty left behind not so long ago, but it was his. I ignored the spike of pain from my leg, whimpering into his shoulder as I squeezed, breathed him in, convincing myself slowly that he was really there, in my arms, before me, not dead, not lost. He had tensed at the contact initially, but relaxed, returning my embrace, patting my back as I hiccuped, practically hysterical.

"It's good to see you too." He assured, still patting me gently. "But you really ought to lay down, or you might mess that leg up more." He pointed out. I shook my head, stubbornly tightening my hold, burying my face into the crook of his neck. He chuckled, leaning his head against mine, the pressure pleasant, reassuring. "You always get so hysterical when you see me, do I make you that sad?" He joked, and I remembered how I'd cried through most of my final visitation with him.

I eventually calmed down, letting him go. He smiled again, carding his fingers through my hair, then grimacing.

"Yuck, you're totally gross. I guess that's my bad though..." He trailed, looking down at my leg. "That too." He said, a small glare invading his previously happy expression. "I should have gotten there sooner. He could have ripped it off." He growled. I watched his fingers clench, but shook my head.

"I'm alive." I whispered. He looked up, seeming surprised. "You're alive." I added as an afterthought, looking him over. He frowned, rubbing the back of his head awkwardly.

"Yeah. Sorry that I couldn't tell you. I'll explain everything later, I promise. But right now I have to go report to Levi. He's been waiting. To be honest, I'm surprised he hasn't dragged me out yet." Eren said, smiling a little at what must have been a personal joke. My brows drew upwards at the words.

"You're... Leaving." I supplied, my mind still a bit dull from the inhalant. He took my hand, nodding.

"Just for a little while. Long enough to tell him what happened and update him on your condition. Then I'll be back, I promise. You can ask me anything you want. Just wait for me, okay?" He requested, giving my hand a squeeze. I wanted him to stay, to answer my questions now, to be near me, to prove that he was really alive. But I knew he had to go, so I nodded, laying back down to wait out the time without him. He smiled appreciatively, squeezing my hand again before standing.

"I'll be back as soon as I can, and we'll get you cleaned up. In the meantime, try to relax." He called, sparing me one last smile before he disappeared through a doorway.

I sighed, trying not to acknowledge my new loneliness. I told myself that I needed to be content with the news of Eren's being alive. And he'd promised to answer all of my questions upon his return, so there was no need for me to theorize. Of course, me being who I am, I was already devising countless theories anyway.

My first thought was that Eren, after somehow becoming a Titan, had gathered a bunch of people and become their ruler. I think that one was a result of lingering anesthesia. Besides, he was reporting to Captain Levi, which meant he was subordinate to him, meaning he was not the highest in the chain of command. So my next guess was that I was already dead, and this was some sort of limbo, not quite heaven, not quite hell, just whatever my mind conjured. But I couldn't imagine all of this up, I realised. So next, I guessed that the annual sacrifices were a hoax. Maybe no one was sacrificed at all. Maybe everyone but the townspeople were in on it. But that couldn't be the case; they wouldn't dangle us low enough for other Titans to reach us if they didn't intend for them to eat us. And some people were brutally ripped apart, so not everyone was saved.  
Then that meant that there must be a small faction, a select few, that were against the practise. Captain Levi was proof enough that this wasn't totally off base. But if that was the case, then how did it work? I wracked my brain countless times, trying to come up with a feasible scenario, but none came to mind. I was just starting to get frustrated when the door opened again. I looked at it warily, but relaxed when it was Eren that entered.

"Hey, I'm back." He announced, heading over to me. He sat down in the same spot as earlier, smiling at me. I was silent, wondering if I could start asking questions, or if there was something else he wanted to talk about first. He sighed. "I know you're dying to ask, so go ahead."

"Where am I?" I asked, no hesitation.

"It's an old town that was abandoned when the Titans first came. We use it as a sort of base camp now." He explained.  
"Who is we?"

"People who oppose the practices inside of the wall, I suppose. We don't have a special name or anything. Most of the people that live here were sacrifices that we've managed to save." He offered. I blanched.

"How many are here? They only make a sacrifice once a year."

"We're nearing two hundred people. Do you think our town is the only one that has the ceremony?" He asked. I frowned, not having considered that before. "And not _all _of us were sacrifices. Some are people that we trusted enough to keep the secret, people we needed. All of the people that came out when I brought you were military personnel, the ones trusted by Erwin and Levi." He explained. I didn't miss the mention of Commander Erwin. So he was in on it too? That made two _very _powerful military figureheads that were totally against the practises inside of the walls. And then the other part of his answer registered with me.  
"If you can bring people you trust, why didn't you come for me? For Mikasa? Why don't you go for Mikasa now?" I demanded. He sighed, biting his lip.

"It doesn't work like that. We can't bring everyone, or the people inside the wall would get suspicious. If we do go in for someone, it has to be a few years after we're sacrificed, the number varies. If I'd come back for you and Mikasa immediately, it would have sent a red flag to the people inside the wall, because it was common knowledge that you two were my closest friends." He reasoned. It sounded scripted, like he'd heard it countless times. Eren wouldn't have taken the time to figure all of that out on his own, so someone must have told him the same thing before. "I had already requested for you two though." He added sheepishly. "They were sending out for you next month."  
"Just me?" I pried. He frowned.

"Yeah, just you." He confirmed.

"What about Mikasa?"  
"She's scheduled for next year." He supplied. I had to take that in, and my heart swelled a bit when I realised that Eren must have asked for me first. I was baffled, but flattered. I took a moment to gather all the knowledge I'd acquired since we started talking, trying to sort out what questions I still needed to ask. I decided to backtrack a little.

"What's the goal of this... Organization?" I asked. He blinked, thinking over his answer.

"To live independent of the wall and the rules of the people inside. Everyone here thinks that the sacrifices are stupid and wasteful, not to mention awful and inhumane. We're trying to survive on our own, and build up a big enough population that when the people inside do eventually notice us, we have enough strength to fight back. Hopefully we can help others see some sense..." He said, this sounding a bit practised as well. I decided to make a topic change.

"Okay. So you were saved, like me, by that female Titan I saw earlier?" I wondered. He nodded. "Alright, well, how did she know when to show up. How did _you_ know when to show up?"

"Levi. He's a Captain inside the walls, I'm sure you know that. So he knows everything there is to know about the sacrifices. He knows who it's going to be, and when." He replied easily.

"And that's why it was _you_ that came for me?" I questioned. He nodded again. "Do you guys save everyone?"

He looked uncomfortable, eventually sighing.

"We can't. If we did, the soldiers would start catching on. I actually broke our rules to get you. We usually wait and hope that the Titan who gets the sacrifice swallows them whole. Then we follow it and cut them out. It's not surefire, but it's better than just letting them die. Better to lose a limb than to die." He admitted. I nodded, understanding the reasoning behind their practices.

"Are you in trouble for breaking the rules for me?" I demanded. He shrugged.

"Levi yelled at me, but it'll be alright. He knows you're valuable, so he didn't fuss too much." He assured me, confusing me unintentionally.

"Valuable? Me?" I repeated, wanting to laugh at the thought.

"Yeah, definitely. I told him all about how smart you are, and how fast you learn, and how much you already know about the world out here, and he was finally convinced when I told him about how you used to make those awesome plans to get us out of trouble or outmaneuver one of those assholes that chased us for stealing one stupid piece of candy!" He elaborated, grumbling a bit towards the end at the memory of the candy shop owner and his broom. "Oh, and he liked the bit about you having photographic memory. That's part of the reason he agreed to get you before Mikasa." He added. I blinked. Was my bookish nature really enough to merit my coming before Mikasa? She was strong, the best at everything she did, whereas the only thing I could do was spout useless knowledge. But it didn't really matter, I was here now. I put that from my mind, deciding to open my next topic.

"Okay, Eren, please, explain what's happened to you." I plead, my eyes seeking out his. He chuckled lowly.  
"I'm surprised you waited this long to ask about that." He admitted. "A lot has happened to me." He began. "After I was saved, I was really messed up for a while. I was hanging there for what felt like years, and seeing all those Titans coming so close to eating me was enough to send anyone to the brink of insanity. You're handling it better than most do, actually. It took Levi a few months to get me functioning properly again. But, as much of an asshole as he is," he paused here, giving me a look that promised I'd soon be learning of Levi's assholery, "he really helped me. He got me back on my feet, taught me how to fight, taught me to channel all of my fear and my hate into a counterattack against the Titans."

He stopped for a moment, taking a large breath and collecting his thoughts.

"I heard about my mom disappearing a few months after I was saved, and we weren't involved in that one. It really hit me when I got the news, but it just made me all the angrier, and more desperate. I begged Levi to go for my father before he could do something stupid like my mom, and he did, but he couldn't find my father anywhere. Apparently he'd already disappeared. As I'm sure you know, it looks like he went somewhere, and is in hiding. We still haven't found him." He trailed. I reached out, taking his shoulder in my hand and giving it a squeeze.

"I started to get really frustrated. I realised how pathetic I was, how little I could do. And, well, I asked them to turn me into a Titan. It doesn't matter who you ask, they won't tell you how they do it. All I know is that they injected me with something, and a month later I could become one. It's kind of messed up, right?" He said, looking up at me. "I have to become what I hate the most to stand a chance against them at all. I'm sure you're ashamed of my decision, but there isn't anything else I could have done. I got pretty good at using the maneuver gear, I even managed to kill a couple of them. But then something would go wrong, and someone would have to save me. I can't tell you how many times I almost died. They used to yell at me for being reckless, said that I was too angry for my own good. It ended up working to my advantage with the shifting though; You have to have a purpose in mind before you can change. It's twisted, I know, but it's been more good than bad, when I add everything up. I was able to save you today, and I can protect the people living here, and kill any Titans that come my way." He continued, kind of rambling, as if he didn't want to think about it too much, didn't want me to think about it too much. But I, of course, did.

"You... You asked them to make you like this?" I repeated. He winced a bit.

"Yeah. I'm not the only one. The female you saw earlier? And there are a few others. I know it seems strange to you, but it's really increased our chances of surviving out here. We've figured out how to repel Titans, and if any do come anywhere close, it's easy for us to dispatch them, since nearly all of us shifters are at least fifteen metres."

I had to process it all in my mind. Eren had chosen to become a Titan? Eren, who'd dreamt of killing every Titan in existence and exploring the outside world? It seemed laughable, and yet, it was the truth. I'd seen it, seen him. I turned my eyes to his, and was overwhelmed by the desperation that his emerald orbs held. He was pleading, begging me not to hate him, not to rebuke him for his decision. He wanted, more than anything else in that moment, for me to accept him for what he is, what he'd become since I'd last seen him. He needed forgiveness, someone to tell him that he hadn't made a mistake.

I reached out, pulling him to me so that his forehead rested in the crook of my neck. It took him a moment, but he relaxed, pressing into the small embrace, his lashes brushing my neck as he closed his eyes. I didn't say anything, too scared that the wrong words would come out, instead settling for running my fingers through his hair. He didn't cry, but his breathing was riddled with shudders, and I knew it was taking all he had not to. He was scared. I was scared. We were still just children, really.  
They say that you become an adult when you turn eighteen, but what does that even mean? I was still terrified of the world, of what living in it entailed. I wasn't ready to take care of myself, despite having done it for years since my grandfather's death. I wanted someone to hold me while I wept and screamed about the unfairness of it all, to complain about the lack of choice. I wanted to make mistakes and not have to take responsibility for them on any level higher than a swat on the bottom or a tug to the ear. I wanted to laugh and play, to have free time that I didn't have to devote to survival. I wanted to be able to tell Eren that he wasn't wrong, that he'd made the right choice, and that it would okay. I wanted to believe it. But I couldn't, I wasn't allowed even that bit of childish stupidity and trust.

The fact of it was, I didn't know if Eren had made the right choice. I was alive because of it, but he had literally become the thing he hated more than anything in the world. I could see it eating him, from the inside out, just like the Titan he was. He didn't even see it, see his jaws slowly closing on his own frail soul. Or maybe he did, and he was ignoring it. I wanted to believe in him, to support the decision he'd made, but I couldn't put my heart into it. All I could do was squeeze him closer, drawing him onto the bed with me.

He was careful of my leg, settling on the right side of my body, the side that wasn't wrapped tightly in a splint. Once he'd found a good spot, he snuggled up, wrapping an arm around my waist as he used to do when we were still young in Shiganshina, still youthful enough that it wasn't abnormal for two boys to be wrapped up in each other on a bed. If anyone were to enter now, they might think us odd, but it could easily be chalked up to us having missed one another during our long separation. Regardless, I didn't care what anyone thought, all I cared about was Eren's body, a little too warm, pressed against mine, alive, there. I could feel his chest rise and fall as his lungs filled with air, could even pick out the gentle thudding of his heartbeat, feel the hot breath as it fell from his lips, all of it definite proof that he was really beside me, that all of this was real.

He might have changed more than I could have imagined. He could become a Titan at will, could pick me up between two fingers and fit me in his mouth with room to spare. He could eat me, if he really wanted to, could eat anyone, or could crush them without a second thought. But at the same time, he was small, broken even more severely than my leg. He'd made a choice that he couldn't unmake, and he hated himself for it, more than he even realised. He was afraid of people, of what they thought of him, of what I thought of him. How could he expect anyone to accept him if he couldn't even accept himself? What right had he, a person who had become the enemy, to beg forgiveness for his choice?

I wondered if he could hear my thoughts, for he shifted against me, bringing his head to rest on my shoulder. I brought my right hand around his back so that he wouldn't cut off my circulation, and crossed my left arm over my body to drape it on top of the one he had wrapped around my waist. He sighed, the puff of air stirring a bit of my hair.

None of it mattered, I realised. I didn't care that Eren had made this choice, that he regretted it. Because he was alive, and I was alive, and we were reunited, able to tangle our limbs together and breath in the sweet scent of the others' sweat, and in my case, a good coating of dried saliva. I frowned as I realised that I was still filthy, but decided not to bring it up, not particularly wanting Eren to move. I'd wait until he mentioned it again. For the time being, I was content to fall into a small nap, warm enough with Eren's body heat next to me that I didn't even need to request a blanket.

A/N: Sorry for the wait, I just got back from Canada, and didn't have time to write while I was there. Salute to Supernatural was great, and I got to kiss Misha Collins on the cheek. He liked my underbust thing. He smiled at me. I am fucking in love with a thirty-eight year old man and I'm not even sorry.

Ahem. Feel free to check out the pic on my facebook page. (Link in my profile if it doesn't show up here.) . ?fbid=654581641259359&set=a.654581637926026.1073741828.556872327696958&type=1&theater  
Anywho, I'm back and ready for action. However, I need to start working on a chapter for my SuFin story, and those take me a bit longer than do these chapters, so there might be a little wait for the next one. I'm also doing eremin prompts on tumblr for eremin week, so I'm a busy gal, needless to say.

I just want to thank everyone for reading and leaving feedback! I'm a bit scared about this chapter, as I'm not entirely sure if I've got Eren down as well as I have Armin down, but if not, give me a some leeway, I've never written him before. I'll figure it out, slowly but surely.

Alright, back to writing! Maybe I can finish a prompt before work! Wish me luck, and see you in the next chapter!


	5. Chapter 5

Eren woke me about half an hour later. At some point he had requested a bucket of warm water be delivered to the infirmary, and he gently shook my shoulder to get me up for a bath. I hadn't really slept enough to be crabby about being woken, though I did grumble as he helped me into an upright position, gently picking me up and carrying me over to a stool. Despite his tenderness, I still hissed in pain as I was lifted. He frowned, glancing down at the leg that was causing me so many problems.

I'd never had to deal with a badly broken bone before. Sure, I'd broken a few fingers in my time, and even an arm once, but none of those had hurt as bad as my leg did. I wondered if it was just because of the less advanced medical supplies, or if it was because of the multiple fractures. Perhaps it was both. Regardless, I was acutely aware of how much trouble I was going to have getting around. Eren would probably have to assist me for a long time, and I might not be able to walk properly, even after it healed. That made my stomach drop, so I stopped thinking about it.

He sat me down on the wooden stool, right next to a drain, then began undoing the buttons of my shirt. I let him pull it off, not caring what its fate was. The shirt was old, patched in several places, and now covered in Titan spit. Even with a good scrubbing, it would probably never be wearable again. The same went for my pants, which Eren was contemplating, trying to figure out the best way to remove them without jostling my leg. Upon looking down, I noticed that they'd already been cut to right above the break, likely to allow someone to treat it.  
"Just cut them off." I suggested. He nodded, standing to search for a pair of scissors.

"I'll let you borrow some of my clothes until we can get you some of your own. They'll be a little big, but it's better than nothing." He pointed out, returning with scissors in hand. I nodded, wincing as he cut into the leg of my pants. It's not that I was particularly attached to the pants, I was just so used to scarce resources that wasting perfectly good cloth kind of went against my morals. But I reminded myself that it wasn't perfectly good, it was old, and torn, and filthy, and already cut beyond repair anyway.

Eren made quick work of the task, lifting me to remove the article entirely, leaving me in my underwear. It was kind of cold in the room without any clothing on, but I did my best to keep my body from shivering, because I knew it would only hurt in the end. Eren gave me a sympathetic look, rubbing my back absently.

"Do you want to keep these on?" He asked, glancing down to my remaining clothing. I considered it for a moment. It wasn't really a question of my liking for the underwear, rather my comfort level. But it was just Eren, and I'd really rather be clean, head to toe. I shook my head, and he removed them as well, discarding them with the rest of my disgusting clothing.

It had been years since I had lain myself bare before him, but it wasn't uncomfortable. We used to take baths together at his house when his mother deemed us too filthy to enter otherwise. Eren always made a fuss of it, but I always enjoyed it. My grandfather wasn't strong enough to draw the water and heat it for me, so if I wanted a bath I had to do it myself. I usually just settled for washing from the basin. But Eren's mother would help us, heating the water on the stove for us. And she'd add more heated water as we bathed, so that it didn't chill.

Eren got to work, dipping a towel into the steaming water in the bucket and then rubbing it against a bar of soap, bringing it across my chest. It was still a little too hot, but I didn't complain, wanting to be rid of the filth I'd collected during the day. I was a bit disappointed that I wouldn't be getting a proper bath, but there wasn't much to be done with my leg in its current state. The splint couldn't get wet, and I couldn't exactly take it off either. So I'd be stuck with rub downs for a while.

"I'll draw you a real bath as soon as you're out of that thing." He promised, as if he'd read my mind. I smiled, lifting my arm so he could clean that as well.

"That sounds wonderful." I admitted, closing my eyes as he continued washing me. It was relaxing, the way he gently rubbed the soap into my skin, then rinsed it off with a small splash of the water. It was akin to getting a massage, but all over instead of in a specific place. Not that I had a lot of experience with that. Mikasa and I sometimes traded massages after working, but it never lasted long, as we were both usually too tired to do much.

But Eren was diligent, making sure every inch he could get to was clean. Once he'd finish with my body, he helped me lay back, dipping my hair in the bucket, then scrubbing some soap into it, working the suds to a lather before he dipped me again. He rung my hair out before he helped me back up. He left me on the stool, going over to a counter and picking up the towel that had been left there, draping that over my shoulders. I smiled as thanks, drawing it close around my form.

"Feel better?" He wondered, leaning against the wall.

"Much. Thanks for the help." I replied, yawning.

"You want to go back to sleep?" He asked, but I shook my head.

"No, sorry, just groggy. I wouldn't mind some clothes though." I said, and he tensed, as if he'd forgotten. Well, to be honest, he probably had.

"Oh, yeah, give me one second. I've got to run to my cabin. I'll be right back!" He swore as he left the room. I rolled my eyes. As if I had any choice but to wait for him. Not only was a completely naked, towel aside, I was also unable to move around by myself. I settled into my towel further, trying to get comfortable on the stool. From the sounds of it, it was going to take him a few minutes to come back.

While he was gone, I thought about my situation. I'd been thinking about Eren and the past we shared this whole time, but I hadn't really thought about our future. I assumed I'd be living in this town with him, but I was a bit scared of the idea. There were no walls, no protection from the Titans. (Not that the walls really protected us all that much.) Eren said it was safe, that they'd learned how to repel Titans, but I'd never heard of such things, and I couldn't wrap my mind around the thought. But Eren had survived here for three years, so it must be safer than I was giving it credit for.

Where would I be staying? I hadn't asked Eren before he left, though I was starting to wish I had. Would I be given my own living space? I didn't have any money to pay for it, but then, neither would any of the other sacrifices. So they must just claim their own space. But I wouldn't be able to live alone, at least, not at first. I was going to need help until my leg healed. I wondered if Eren planned for me to stay with him. It was very likely, he'd always begged me to move in with his family when we were children. Then again, there was the distinct possibility that he'd grown to like his solitude. I'd have to ask him about it later.

I heard footsteps coming down the hallway outside the door, and judging by the hurried pace, I guessed it was Eren. Sure enough, it was his head of brown hair that poked through the door, followed by the rest of him. He was panting, and I frowned.

"You didn't have to run, I'm not going anywhere." I mused. He gave me a grin, his chest still rising and falling harshly.

"I didn't want anyone coming in and taking advantage of you while I was gone." He retorted. I quirked a brow, lifting my arms so he could slip a shirt over my head.

"Is that something I'm going to have to worry about here?" I questioned. He bit his lip as he smoothed the shirt over my chest.

"Well, there are some pretty weird people here, but Hanji is really the only one you have to worry about." He grumbled. I tilted my head to the side, a habit I'd had since I was young.

"Who is that?" I asked, and he scratched the back of his head.

"You met them earlier. When I put you down?" He offered, and I thought back to all the people I'd seen.

"The tall lady with glasses?" I supplied. He pursed his lips.

"You're thinking of the right person, but... Hanji isn't a she." He said. My brows furrowed. They'd looked pretty female to me, but I wasn't completely lucid at the time.

"Then he. He looked at my leg before everyone came to pick me up." I recalled. Eren's face still didn't change from that expression though.

"Uh, no, 'he' isn't really right either." He mumbled. I blinked, thinking about it before I put two and two together.

"Oh! Would 'they' be more appropriate?" I wondered.

"Yeah, that's pretty standard. Don't feel bad if you mess up the first few times though, we all do. It's not something any of us has ever had to deal with, so using neutral terms is kind of hard." He admitted. I nodded, sticking one of my legs through the underwear he had provided.

"I've never heard of someone not being either, but I guess that's not anything bad. It doesn't really make a difference to me." I decided, looking down at my splinted leg. He got the idea and helped me slip the other leg through, pulling the fabric up until the band of it found my hips.

"You're taking it a lot better than most people do." He said with a sigh. "They usually avoid Hanji when they can, until they get comfortable around them." He continued. "Nobody really has a choice in the matter though. Hanji's the resident expert on Titans, and they're pretty handy in the infirmary too."  
He helped me into the pants, having me hold them up as he looped a belt around my hips, tightening it so that the pants wouldn't fall off.

"I forgot how tiny you are." He muttered, picking me up and carting me back over to the bed. He let me sit instead of laying me down, and I leaned against to wall to support my back.

"I hit a growth spurt recently, believe it or not. I'm about five seven now." I retorted, crossing my arms over my chest. He chuckled, plopping down next to me on the bed.

"Still not as tall as me." He pointed out, ducking as I swiped at him.

"Whatever. I'm still growing." I pouted, letting out a huff of air.  
"Think you'll get taller than me?" He wondered. I nodded vigorously.

"Yeah! My dad was really tall, so I'll take after him. Just you wait!" I replied. I instantly regretted it when I saw the mischievous look on his face.

"I don't know, fifteen metres is pretty hard to beat..." He trailed, and I groaned.

"That doesn't count."

"It totally counts, what are you talking about?"

"It doesn't count." I said, stubbornness lacing my tone. He just laughed, getting back up.

"Whatever you say. I'm going to throw away your old clothes, unless you don't want me to." He informed me, picking them up. I shook my head.

"Throw them away. They're ruined anyway."

He headed over to the trash bin in the room, and he was about to drop the clothes in when I remembered.

"Ah, wait!" I yelled, and he froze, his stance kind of funny. He looked over at me like I was crazy. "There's... There's candy in my pocket." I announced. He quirked a brow, but didn't argue, pulling the remnants of my pants out from the other fabric, letting the rest fall into the bin. It took some navigating of the scraps, but he eventually found my pocket and fished the little bag out. After discarding my pants, he came to sit beside me again, handing me the bag. I took it, and was relieved to find that it wasn't damp. With any luck, the candy might still be alright. Upon looking inside, I found the candy still intact, looking as tasty as it had when Mikasa had given it to me.

I couldn't help myself, laughter spilling from my lips. I'd saved this candy, even though it was pointless at the time, as I'd believed I'd be dying soon. But for some reason, I'd been unable to throw it away or leave it to rot, so I'd shoved it in my pocket. And here I was, suddenly glad I'd done it. Eren was looking at me curiously, probably worried I had lost my mind. I was laughing at nothing, after all.

I dumped the bag out on the bed between us, and his eyes lit up when he saw what it was.

"Holy shit, Armin! Where did you get this?" He demanded, staring at it hungrily.

"Mikasa gave it to me. I think it was her parting gift." I said solemnly. He frowned, but didn't take his eyes from the treats. I laughed, picking up one of the few remaining pink candies. I'd elected to eat mostly strawberry flavored ones in the cell, since it was the last thing I would ever eat, or so I thought. "You can have the green ones." I offered, and he didn't hesitate to take a handful and shove them into his mouth. The look on his face was enough to tell me that he hadn't had candy since he'd been sacrificed. I tried to smile, happy I'd supplied him with something he'd missed so much. But it was bittersweet, for I was forced to realise how much Eren had lost three years ago. He must have been hurting, more than I could ever know. I reached over, wrapping an arm around his shoulders and bringing him close to me. He fidgeted, picking up the rest of the candy and moving it to his other side, scooting over to return the embrace. I giggled when he reached behind him to grab a piece, thinking I wouldn't notice if he moved slowly. I didn't mind though, there was no one else I'd rather give the sweet to.

"I'll make some for you when I can walk." I decided. I'd watched Carla do it enough times that I could figure it out for myself. He pulled away from me to flash a broad grin, stained green already from the candy, nodding eagerly.

"It's better homemade. This stuff is from the store, right?" He asked, gesturing towards the now very small pile of remaining candy.

"Yeah. I don't think Mikasa had time to make it herself."

"It took a few days to make, if I remember. Mom used to leave it in jars in the kitchen. It was like torture, waiting for all the crystals to grow." He recalled, and I laughed.

"But it was worth it in the end." I reminded him, laying my head against his shoulder.

"I guess so. I wish I could see that again. You know, my kitchen, all the jars, mom..." He murmured. I inhaled a little too sharply, my fingers seeking out his and tangling them together. His fingers squeezed mine, and I returned the gesture. "But hey, I have you here now, so that's a big improvement already." He said, his tone light again. I sighed, a small smile growing on my lips again.

"For me too." I agreed. And it was true. Life without Eren had been miserable, tiresome. And now, even though I was in an unfamiliar place, surrounded by people I didn't know, I was already exponentially more comfortable. I knew I was safe with Eren, knew he'd take care of me when I just couldn't anymore. That reminded me...

"Eren?" I prompted. He made a noise to affirm that he was listening. "Where am I going to stay?" I asked. He scoffed, as if it was a stupid question. Maybe it was.

"With me, of course." He stated simply. "I have an extra room in my cabin anyway. I'll have to clean it out for you, and we'll have to make you a bed, but you can't exactly stay by yourself like this. I'd be surprised if you could even manage on crutches." He trailed, shaking me gently, a playful gesture from our childhood.

"I don't think I can even use crutches right now. It hurts to even look at my leg the wrong way." I complained, earning a nudge.

"Don't make me feel any worse about it."  
"Right, sorry." I apologized, then we fell into silence. It could have been awkward, but I didn't mind it, just taking some time to be together like that. It was quiet for quite a few minutes, allowing us to hear the footsteps in the hallway. It was a weird walking pattern though, one step sounding like a heeled boot, the other kind of a clunk, like metal. I was about to ask Eren who would be coming, but the door opened before I got the chance.

"Hanji, I think my arm... Oh." The man in the door stopped when he realised that Hanji wasn't inside. I looked at his face, trying to place the freckles and the chocolate colored eyes. He was so familiar, but then maybe not. When would I have met him? I glanced over the rest of him, taking in the metal arm and leg on his right side, my mind immediately trying to figure out how they worked.

"Hey Eren." He said sheepishly, bringing my mind back to trying to figure out who he was. He entered the room fully, standing at his full height as he walked. My eyes fell to the machinery again, watching a bit of steam escape the joints as he used them. Upon further inspection, I noticed the little canisters all along the build, and gathered that the limbs were likely made in a similar fashion as the maneuver gear. But where were the triggers? Maybe in the other hand? But no, he wasn't holding anything. Then how...  
"And... Armin?" He asked, his voice wavering, unsure. I looked back up, realising he was much closer than I thought. I blinked, taking in his face once more. I noticed that one of his eyes was a bit lighter in color than the other, a bit hazy. He was probably blind in that eye, and I wondered how it happened, probably a Titan though. This guy must have been sacrificed too.

It hit me, all of a sudden, the sweet brown eyes, tanned skin, dark hair, endless freckles, friendly demeanor.  
"Marco!" I gasped, looking him over again as if seeing him for the first time. He smiled brightly, shuffling his remaining foot awkwardly, obviously unsure of how to greet me properly. I solved the problem for him, opening my arms. He leaned down and gave me a gentle squeeze with his left arm, holding the mechanical one behind him. He pulled back with a light blush on his cheeks. Maybe he wasn't used to affection anymore. But I'd always liked it when Marco played with us. He was less rowdy, more like me, and he was great at diffusing tense situations.

"How have you been?" He wondered.

"Alright. I've been managing." I replied, offering him a small smile.

"That's better than nothing. How about Mikasa?"

"She's the same as always. Well, a little quieter, but other than that..."

"And Jean?" He continued. I froze, biting my lip. I hadn't seen much of Jean since Marco had been sacrificed. I knew they were really close, and I knew that Jean had been unfortunate enough to join the military right before Marco was chosen. He'd been one of the soldiers on guard that day. He'd seen.

"He's fine." I lied. I didn't know how he was, but I didn't want to worry Marco anymore than he probably already was.

"That's good to hear. I miss him." He admitted, laughing to himself. "Anyway, you look pretty beat up, so I'll leave you alone. If Hanji shows up here, could you tell them that I need to see them?" He wondered. I nodded, waving to him as he left. "We should talk sometime soon though, Armin." He called.

"Sure! See you soon!" I agreed. He left, closing the door behind him, silence reigning for a moment.

"...Jean isn't really fine, is he?" Eren asked after Marco's footsteps had disappeared. I frowned.

"I don't really know. I've only seen him a couple of times, and he's always on duty. But he can't be fine, not after seeing Marco. Does he know that Jean was on guard that day?"

"I don't think so."

We fell quiet again, eventually laying back down on the bed and finding our previous positions. I tried not to think about the people I'd left behind, the people that missed me, people that missed other people. Mikasa was the only person I really had left, but Marco had left behind Jean and his family, Eren had left his mother, father, Mikasa, and I behind. I knew first hand how hard it was to live after losing someone so precious. My mind flicked to Mikasa, poor Mikasa, who'd lost everything dear to her. Not only one, but two sets of parents, and her two only friends. How was she faring? I had no way to find out. I could only hope that these people would send for her soon.  
It was hard, but I eventually managed to find sleep again, distracting myself with the sound of Eren's breathing.

A/N: I kept you guys waiting, huh? Sorry, but literally the day I got back from Canada I learned that it was eremin week! And I, being the naïve gal I am, was like "I'll do prompts on tumblr to celebrate! I'm not very well known, so I'll be lucky if I get two!" Yeah. No. I got, like, sixteen. The eremin fandom literally made me its bottom bitch. Yet, here I am, one week and fourteen prompts later (I combined a couple of them to make my life easier.) Still trying to write for these guys. I think I've got a better grasp on the both of them now though, thanks to the prompts. It gave me a chance to really get a feel for their relationship, how they act with each other.  
If you don't follow me on tumblr but are wanting to view the prompts, they're up as chaptered fics on both Fanfiction and Archive of Our Own. It's called "How Many Ways Can You Fall in Love" on FF, and it goes by the same title on Ao3, but I split up the NSFW and the rated T stuff, so there is a secondary one called "How Many Ways Can You Fall into Bed" for the NSFW content. I'll have them up on Devi too, eventually, but I wanted to get this chapter out first.  
My precious freckled baby made an appearance this time! Ironically though, despite him being my precious baby, I'm not sure how to write him just yet. I'm sure he's coming off as OOC, but I'll get better, promise. I'll just have to read some more JeanMarco fics. Speaking of, I'm considering writing a side story for those two, after Jean makes his appearance. What do you guys think? Would anyone read it?  
Alright, much to do, so I'll let you guys go! Oh, but before I do, I'm up to 100 followers on tumblr. ...150 now, actually. And I wanted to celebrate, but how? What should I do? I can kind of draw a little, and I can write a little also... And it doesn't have to be SnK, but it could be. I need ideas, please? I'm not good at choosing for myself!  
Okei, for real this time, I'm off! Thanks for reading, and feedback is appreciated!

KuroRiya

九六りや


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: I know, I don't usually put these at the beginning, but I wanted to warn you guys, so you couldn't say I didn't: I didn't think it would happen in my story, but there are actually manga spoilers in this story. Like, all of the Titan Shifters identities are revealed. (That's it, as far as I can think of, so if you already know, then no problems!) But if you stopped when the anime did, meaning the Female Titan arc, then this is going to be serious spoilage for you. Like, nothing will ever be the same! So turn back, all ye that aren't caught up. Ye have been warned. (There are no spoilers in this one though. I just wanted to say before I forgot.)

The next time I woke, it was because of a gentle motion, a slight jostling. I tried to ignore it, trying to tell myself that it was just Mikasa, probably getting up for work that day. But the movement didn't cease, and I finally forced my lids open. Looking up, I saw Eren's face, which turned down to offer me a smile when he realised I had stirred.

"Hey, sorry, I tried not to wake you." He said quietly. I blinked, trying to clear the sleepy fog from my mind. Slowly it started coming back to me, remembrance hitting me anew as my mind became clearer and clearer. I had to wonder how many times I would have to go through this; My mindset was still that of life inside the walls. I still expected Mikasa to be the one around, for Eren to be dead, for all of this to have been a very strange and hopeful dream. But no matter how many times I woke, it was to this same situation. Eren was alive, I was alive, Mikasa was alone inside the walls, I was with Eren.

He carried me with apparent ease, which I thought kind of baffling. Sure, Eren had always been stronger than me, at least in the physical sense. But I never thought he'd be able to cart me around as if I weighed nothing. Even when he'd given me piggyback rides before his sacrifice, it was with much effort, and they never lasted long. I decided to be thankful for it though, for I was unable to travel anywhere by myself in my current state.

We were walking through the castle when I woke, but he exited it and I found myself out in the open, few buildings standing near the larger structure. He left the path, walking instead through the grass. He knew where he was going, and he knew it well. Upon close inspection, I could see that the grass where he walked had already been stepped on before, likely several times, forming a sort of foot trail. It led us towards a lake, and then around it, and finally to a small gathering of roughly repaired cabins. Eren walked into the little area, finding a dirt path yet again, and following that to one of the buildings.

He struggled with the door for a moment, having to try to open it without dropping me. I batted his hand away and opened it myself. A quick thanks was all he gave me, pushing his way through the entrance and kicking the door shut behind him. He didn't take his boots off, walking into what looked to be a kitchen and sitting me on a wooden chair.

I took a moment to look around his home. It was small, but not dreary, well lived in and comfortable looking. The furniture was either very old and tattered, or obviously handmade, but I didn't mind it much, it kind of suited Eren's personality. Most of the main rooms were connected, no walls separating the kitchen, living area, and dining table. There were three doors, likely two bedrooms and a bathroom. Eren opened one of the cabinets, grabbing a mug and filling it with water from a large pitcher. He brought it to me and sat it down on the table, then took a seat in a chair next to mine.

"This is home, I guess. Welcome." He announced, gesturing to the space. "The door on the far left is my room, the one in the middle is the bathroom, and that last one is the spare. I've got it full of junk right now, but that'll be your room." He explained. I nodded with a smile, taking a drink of the water he'd brought me. "For now, you can just sleep with me. My bed is big enough until we can make you your own."

"That's fine." I assured, yawning the remainder of my grogginess off.

"We have to draw water from the well, but it's right outside, so if we run out just let me know and I'll get some more." He continued. I smiled, nodding.

"Alright. What about neighbors?" I wondered.

"Neighbors?" He repeated, looking at me quizzically.

"Do we have any?" I elaborated, and he nodded.

"Yeah. All of the shifters live in this little area, and a few other people. Marco lives two cabins down. A couple of them are a little... Standoffish, but nothing too terrible. I'm sure you'll run into them all at some point. We all keep different hours though, so it'll be a hit and miss kind of thing." He explained, shrugging before getting up and helping me to sit on the sofa instead. It creaked under my weight, and even more so when Eren sat as well, sinking low to the floor. My distress about this must have been obvious, for Eren laughed.

"It won't break." He promised, bouncing up and down gently to illustrate his point. "It's just whiny."

I smiled, though it was strained, for I still wasn't entirely sure about the piece of furniture. But if Eren trusted it, then I might as well give it the benefit of the doubt. I relaxed, letting the plush curve around my body, akin to an embrace. We were quiet for a moment, him still giving me time to look around, for there was much to take in. But once he'd decided I'd had enough time, he stood, going into the door on the far right, the one he said was a storage room a the moment. He emerged with a stack of books in his hands, which he promptly deposited in front of me. I gasped, eagerly grabbing the first from the top. He grinned, sitting back down.

"I've been collecting them for you. Most of the people around here can't read, so when they move into a house and find books, they just throw them out. I grab them whenever I see them." He said, proudly puffing out his chest. I gave him the biggest smile I'd mustered since before he was sacrificed, leaning over and wrapping my arms around his shoulders. The books meant so much more to me than he could ever know. It was a fact that I liked to read, one that everyone who knew me was aware of. It wasn't the prospect of being able to read the books that made me so happy, though. It was the fact that he'd thought of me, had gone to the trouble to save something for me even though there was no absolute guarantee that I'd ever be there to appreciate it. Every time he picked up a book, took it home, shoved it in his storage room, he was thinking of me. Even in my absence. He'd never forgotten me.

"Thank you, Eren." I murmured, inhaling against his neck. He smelled earthy, and a bit like sweat, just like he always used to smell. He returned the hug with a couple of pats to my back.

"Yeah, no problem. There are more in there, that was just the closest pile." He added. I pulled back, grinning widely.  
"Fantastic!" I laughed, opening the cover of the book and flipping some of the pages. It was good to know that I wouldn't be bored while I waited for my limb to heal. The book from the top happened to be a book of fairy tales. The language was a little different than our own, likely German, since I could read most of it. After we'd been forced to retreat behind walls, cultures began to melt together. The language that resulted from the mix was prominently German, since most of the people that survived had been from that country. But there was a bit of French mixed in, and even a rare Asian word, as far as I could tell. But it was okay that the book was going to be difficult, that just gave me something to focus on.

"You'll have to read to me sometime." Eren decided, drawing his legs against his chest, his chin resting on his knees. I looked at him, unable to ignore the sort of... Lonely look that he was trying to hide. It brought a frown to my own face as I put the book back down, reaching a hand over to clasp his shoulder.

"I will." I promised, squeezing gently. He unfolded himself, scooting closer to lay his head on my shoulder. What had he done when I wasn't here? He didn't know how to read very well, barely able to get through a picture book by himself. And without Mikasa or I there, what did he do for entertainment? Surely not all of his time was devoted to working, everyone had to take an occasional day off. But what could he do in this lonely cabin? Maybe he had made other friends. Marco was here, after all.

I reached for the book again, picking one of the fairy tales at random, and began reading aloud. I had to stop a few times to think about the meaning of a word, sometimes asking Eren for his opinion. We couldn't have been one hundred percent right, but we got the gist of the story. And it was interesting, trying to learn the words that hadn't been in use for more than a century. But the best part of it was feeling Eren next to me, hanging on to every word I read with interest, radiating a superb amount of body heat. He'd always been a warm boy, but it was almost overwhelming now. Was that a side effect of the Titan shifting? I decided not to bring it up, preferring this lighthearted atmosphere we'd managed to find.

By the time I started reading the next story, Eren had elected to fill in the words we didn't know with various expletives, snickering to himself until I asked him what was so funny. He let me in on the joke, and the rest of the story ended up being pretty vulgar with our obscenities interwoven into the tale. Usually I'd scold Eren for ruining a literary masterpiece, but I had missed him and his antics so much, I couldn't help but join in. And, admittedly, I enjoyed the story a lot more than I would have without the added humor.

When we finished the second one, I was forced to realise that it was getting darker outside. Eren took note of it as well, getting up to light a few candles before it could get too dark. I was surprised by how much of the day I had unknowingly slept away.

"Sorry, I didn't even know it was this late. You must be starving! I'll run over to the castle and grab some food." He announced, heading for the door already. I raised a brow.

"You mean to tell me you have no food in that kitchen of yours?" I wondered. He halted, scratching the back of his head awkwardly.

"Well, yeah, I have food. But I'm a terrible cook, you know that." He replied, making me roll my eyes.

"Help me up." I commanded, lifting my arms. He did, coming to my side quickly and hefting me up so that I hovered just above the ground. I felt kind of like a rag doll being held like that, but ignored it. "Sit me on a counter, please." I requested, and he did, sitting me down next to the stove. "Tell me what you have."

He began listing what food he had, opening cabinets as he went to remind him. To be honest, it wasn't much, but it was enough for some simple noodle dish. If I remembered correctly, Eren was pretty fond of beef soup, so I decided to go with that, since he had a bit of beef stashed away. I instructed him to light the stove and get a pot of water. He trudged outside for wood and water with a bit of grumbling, and I opened the nearest cabinet, remembering that he mentioned a few spices that had been left by the previous owners.

I removed a couple, reading labels and sniffing to identify them. It took some doing, but by the time Eren had returned, I had located garlic, salt, pepper, and a few that smelled good. (I could only hope they'd taste as good.) I put him to work cutting up the meat, and got to work on the vegetables myself, awkwardly twisting my body on the counter to chop them on the space next to me. He finished before I did, and I told him to put it on the stove in a pan and cook it till it was brown. I craned, dropping the vegetables into the pot of water, adding the spices as well. When the meat was cooked, I had him toss it in and put it on the heat.

He seemed to have realised what we were making, for he was grinning widely. But when I informed him of the wait, his face fell a little. I laughed, stretching my arms out to signify that I wanted down. He complied, this time picking me up with an arm under my knees and another supporting my back. This was how he'd carried me to his home, and I preferred it to the rag doll method, even if I looked pretty weird with my leg sticking straight out, thanks to the splint that went all the way to my upper thigh. I realised that my knee and ankle had probably been dislocated by the weight, not to mention all of the breaks from the bearded Titan's crushing grip. If I was being honest with myself, I was lucky to still have my leg at all. I could have ended up like Marco.

"Where do you want to sit?" He asked, and I looked around.

"The table." I decided, and he put me in the same chair as earlier. My water still sat there, and I took another drink. Eren sat as well, crossing his arms on the table and laying his head in them. I chuckled, ruffling his hair, the chocolate colored locks silky, though a little oily.

"You need a bath." I stated, running my fingers through and massaging his scalp anyway. He groaned.

"I know." He agreed, leaning into the touch. "I'll hop in the river after dinner." He promised. I blanched, my fingers halting.

"What?" I demanded, sounding every bit as disapproving as I felt.

"I don't have time to heat up water. It's warm enough outside anyways." He said, shrugging. I scowled.

"What do you mean, you don't have time?" I questioned, and he finally looked up, meeting my glare.

"Uh, maybe I should say I don't have the patience..." He trailed. "But don't worry about it, I don't mind the river, promise. It's actually pretty nice, never too cold or anything. A lot of us just use the river." He added. I tried to glare him out of it, but he didn't relent, so I just sighed, accepting that defeat.

"Whatever." I sniffed, returning my hand to his hair. He closed his eyes, burying his face in his arms again. He reminded me of a dog, and I couldn't stifle the giggle that the image elicited. He chose to ignore the digression though, opting to let me continue.

"Armin, you're wonderful, I missed you so much." He murmured, rolling his shoulders a few times before letting them droop.

"Did you miss me, or scalp massages?" I wondered. He chuckled, peeking out of his arms.

"Both?" He tried. I rolled my eyes again, letting my hand drop.

"Uh huh. It's time to add the noodles." I informed him, and he eagerly stood, opening one of the cabinets and pulling out a sack of dried noodles. He dumped them into the pot, stirring a few times before replacing the lid and returning to his seat.

"How long till it's done?" He asked, and I smirked.

"Until I say so." I replied easily. He scoffed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Maybe I didn't miss you so much after all." He spat, pouting. I grinned at his antics, reaching over and flicking his nose before he had a chance to flinch away. "Nope, I definitely didn't!" He announced, sticking his tongue out. I laughed, the feeling so wonderful as my body shook with it. I hadn't laughed once since I lost Eren, but as soon as I was near him again, it spilled forth like a fountain that had been backed up for too long. That was one of the things I had missed most about him.

He eventually gave up on making me feel bad, joining in on the laughter.

"Alright, alright, so maybe I missed you a little." He admitted, trying to hold a straight face.

"Just a little?" I prompted, and he let a smile crack his mask of indifference.

"Maybe a lot." He mumbled, rolling his eyes.

"That's what I thought." I said matter-of-factually. He gaped, and I had to remind myself that he was used to shy, very quiet, lacking self-confidence Armin. While I was still all of those things, I had realised somewhere down the road that I wasn't going to get anywhere in life if I didn't show at least a little confidence, even if it was fake. I smiled, winking his way. "I missed you too." I added. He blinked a few times, then his cheeks got very red and he looked away.

"U-Uh, is the food done?" He asked. I quirked a brow, not missing the sudden change in conversation.

"Is Eren Jaeger... _Embarrassed_?" I asked coyly, and he stiffened, refusing to look at me.

"Shut up! I'm just... Not used to you being all... I don't know." He stuttered, getting up to check on the food regardless of my lack of answer. I chuckled, kind of liking this flustered side of my friend. He stared into the pot, obviously not having a clue how to tell if the soup was done.

"Get a spoon and try one of the noodles. If they're soft, then it's ready." I called, and he did as he was told. Judging by the fact that he started ladling the soup into two bowls, I assumed it was done. He brought both bowls to the table, then returned for spoons. I waited till he was ready, then started eating. I was smart enough to blow on it before bringing it to my lips, but Eren, of course, was too excited. He yelped, dropping the spoon back into the bowl. I sighed, shaking my head as I handed him my water. He gulped all of it down, his eyes screwed shut in a bid to hold back the tears that were likely welling up.

"Honestly Eren, you haven't grown up at all." I mumbled. He sent a glare my way, getting up to refill the glass.  
"And you have?" He wondered, sarcasm lacing his tone. I scoffed with indignation.

"Definitely. I'm way more mature." I said, and he laughed.

"Is that right?"

"Yes, it is!" I shot back, crossing my arms over my chest. I realised that I'd fallen into his trap though, pouting just as he had earlier. I frowned, sighing in defeat. "Alright, well, sometimes I'm more mature."

He laughed again, sitting back down. This time he blew on his soup, successfully managing to take a bite. His face melted as he finally got a real taste, making me smile.

"Okay, anything I said? Forget it. You are the best human alive." He informed me, taking another bite. I tittered, returning to my own soup. It really wasn't that great, just a quick dish that he had the ingredients for. Were I at the tavern, this wouldn't have passed at all. It was weak, and the meat was far from tender, and the vegetables were a little too soft, but Eren was scarfing it down as if he hadn't eaten anything since I'd last seen him. I suppose he must have had a rough time, living on his own for these three years. I'd learned to cook by helping my grandfather out, and by working in the tavern. But he had no chance to learn. Apparently they provided food at the castle, but that was a lot of trouble to go through to get a meal. (And, if I was being honest, my soup was probably better than anything they could cook up, especially since it seemed that the castle was military-run.)

I smiled softly into the bowl, deciding then and there that I'd make up for all of the good meals he had missed. Maybe not right away, since I couldn't really walk around just yet, but I would make the best food I could, because that was the least I could do for my friend.

A/N: I think that's a pretty quick update, yeah? I wanted to get one out before they release the English patch for DMMD re:connect. It's supposed to come out by tonight, but I'm guessing it might be delayed a few days. We'll see. But when it does come out, plan to see very little of me until I have finished the entire game. I am a completionist, where visual novels are concerned.  
OH! And, as it would turn out, there is indeed a JeanMarco week, November 11th -18th. Freckled Jesus help me, my fingers still hurt from EreMin week. But I can't not participate! I must show my love for my precious freckled baby! He'll also be appearing in this story pretty frequently, if you couldn't guess. And I think I'm going to do a little side story for he and Jean, when it becomes appropriate. But just a heads up, I will be opening prompts for JeanMarco week, so if you want me to fill one, just keep it in mind. (Or I guess you could send it to me now, and I MIGHT get to it early. MIGHT!)  
God, I love these little dorks. I think there's going to be one more chapter of the current timeline, then I'm going to jump a little, so that you guys don't have to read seventy chapters of Armin hobbling around a cabin and reading fairy tales. As cute as that is, it'll get old really fast. And I'm sure you're wondering what the ultimate goal of the story is. (Me too, hahaha, yeah. I have a lot to think about...)

So, what is up? All of the stories that I follow haven't been updating! And I didn't get a single feedback message for my SuFin update, which is SERIOUSLY weird. What's going on, fandom friends? Is it no fandom activity November? I thought it was no shaving... Huh... Well, if it is no fandom activity November, then I implore you to break the rules and leave me feedback anyway, because it is the food of my soul. It's what gets me writing, and keeps this story updating relatively frequently.

Well, thanks for reading, and like I said, please leave feedback if you have a bit of time. See you next time!

KuroRiya

九六りや


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: Okei, no, seriously. Titan-Shifter identities revealed in this chapter. If you don't want them to be spoiled, you shouldn't read!

I'd been living with Eren outside of the walls for about three weeks. Time seemed to drag by very slowly, but that was mostly due to my immobility. But Hanji finally gave me the okay to start hobbling around on crutches, since the muscle around my knee had repaired itself enough that they could install a new splint that bent a bit. It kept my foot off the ground, allowing me to move without jostling my leg with the help of the crutches. The first few days like this were terrible, actually. My hip had been damaged along with my leg, so putting weight on it, even on one side, hurt awfully. But I dealt with it reasonably, gritting my teeth against the pain. Having Eren carry me everywhere got old very fast.

After my hips grew accustomed to being used again, getting around was fairly easy. The crutches still hurt my underarms, but it was manageable. And when Eren noticed the bruises forming, he quickly found some old clothes to roll up and tie to the top, to cushion it. Hanji yelled at me, saying that you weren't supposed to lean your weight against them like that, but I just drowned them out. It was too much trouble to get around in the apparently correct position. Frankly, I got tired much quicker, since I had to strain my arms.

When I was sure I would be able to get pretty far without tiring out, I began taking walks. Eren had work to do, after all, so he wasn't at the cabin to entertain me all the time. I became pretty familiar with the area, and a few of the residents. I met Reiner and Bertholdt, apparently the oldest Titan-Shifters. The shifters worked in teams of two, and those two definitely had the definition of team down to a T. They were usually working when Eren was at home, and off when he was not. So I ran into them pretty frequently. They seemed very welcoming, Reiner grinning at me the first time he laid eyes on me, and Bertholdt offering a shy smile similar to my own.  
I was surprised by their natures, for I'd expected other residents to be wary of me, at least at first. I was a stranger, after all. But they didn't seem to mind at all, and Reiner struck up a conversation as soon as I was within earshot. I stopped that first day to talk with them, all three of us going to sit under a tree when we realised that we'd be speaking for a while. It didn't take long for us to get started on the topic of my new arrival, and they asked what had happened in regards to my leg, though they waved my story away when I mentioned Eren. Apparently we were hot news at the moment. After talking for a while, they walked me back to the cabin, Reiner wanting to make sure I made it back on my leg, for that was one of the early days, and it was very possible that I wouldn't.

After that first time, I ended up spending time with them pretty frequently, be it one or both at a time. It was usually just a few minutes, a half hour at best, but it was nice to have someone to talk to. They mentioned the other shifters that I hadn't met yet, Eren's partner and a set of two girls, promising I'd run into them sooner or later. One day Reiner finally forced me to meet the girl pair, a tall brunette named Ymir, and a very short blonde named Historia. Ymir didn't speak much, but Historia was friendly. I eventually learned that Historia herself actually wasn't a Titan-Shifter, but was the only one who could put up with Ymir's attitude, so they had been paired together.

That only left Eren's partner, the female I'd seen the first day he'd brought me. I wondered what she was like, knowing only that her name was Annie, and she was a friend of Bertholdt and Reiner. But I was always too busy with Eren when he wasn't working to seek her out. I made him promise that he'd invite her over so I could meet her, and he said he'd try. Apparently she wasn't very friendly.

I was worried when I didn't run into Marco. Eren said he lived in the area too, but I never saw him while I was out, and he didn't come to see me in the cabin. Eren explained that he worked around the same time that he did, explaining his absence. But, finally, I happened upon him. I was out a bit later than I normally was, and had actually been on my way back to the cabin, when I saw him, one leg already in his door.

I called to him, and he turned his head, an expression of surprise lacing his features, but it quickly faded to a grin. He invited me inside, and I agreed, very much wanting to have a chat with him. I wanted to know what had happened, how he had been, how he'd fared. He had suffered similarly to me, though he hadn't been fortunate enough to keep his limbs. Before sitting with me, he put some tea on, and the smell was enough to have my mouth watering. Eren didn't bother with much more than coffee and water, though one was tasteless and he hated the other. But Marco had several different teas, which he claimed to have made himself, blushing the entire time. He dropped some sugar into my cup before handing it to me, then sat down, giving me the go ahead to start asking questions.  
"Well, I guess the first thing I should ask is how you've been." I decided, and he smiled.

"Alright, all things considered. But you don't need to bother with formalities. You can go ahead and ask what you really want to." He said, his brown eyes looking at me confidently. Marco always had been a very forward boy. I smiled softly.

"Okay. Well, how did it happen?" I questioned, glancing at his mechanical limbs. He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck.  
"I'm sure it was similar to how it happened to you. One of the Titans got its hand on my leg, and yanked me down. I think the difference is that the anchors didn't give when you were yanked on. Mine did, and I fell. The Titans kind of swarmed around me, and they kept getting in each others way, but one finally pushed through, and dragged me a little ways away, and it took a nice bite out of me." He said, tilting his head toward his arm. I grimaced, the image of dull teeth crunching through flesh and bone enough to make my stomach churn.  
"Hanji said I went into shock after that, which is what saved me actually. But I was kind of half conscious because of it. I remember hearing some stomping, and then something really hot fell in my eye, and I passed out. Someone told me that it was Annie that saved me. And she said that it was blood that had fallen in my eye, hers. One of the Titans bit her when she came to pick me up, and it fell in my eye. Titan blood is really hot, so it blinded me on the right side." He finished, explaining all of his missing or nonfunctional body parts. I frowned, suddenly very aware of just how lucky I actually was.

"Marco, I..." I began, but he held his hands up.

"No, don't say it. I don't want any pity. I'm alive, and I'm managing, and Annie has a soft spot for me now. I think she feels bad about my eye, even though it wasn't her fault. But trust me, you want Annie to have a soft spot for you. She's pretty scary..." He trailed, forcing a smile. I returned the expression, twiddling my fingers in my lap. I was quiet for a while, sipping at my tea again for something to do. I had so many more questions to ask, but I felt like I'd already dragged plenty of hard memories up for Marco.

"Is that all you want to ask?" He said with a grin, and I couldn't help but chuckle. He was sharper than I gave him credit for.

"Um... How do you do it?" I wondered, looking up at him. "I'm having so much trouble just getting around with a broken leg. How do you manage with two missing limbs?" He tapped a finger to his lips in thought, opting to simply shrug.

"It was really hard, at first." He admitted. "I was actually bed-ridden for a couple of months. There was really nothing I could so, since I was missing a leg and an arm. I couldn't use crutches without both arms, and I was too big to be carried around." He explained, quirking a brow at me to show that he knew about Eren carting me everywhere for the first couple of weeks. I blushed, but didn't say anything, waiting instead for him to continue. "But finally I'd healed enough that Hanji could attach some prostheses. The first ones were really simple, just enough that I could start walking again, but even then, only with help. It was really frustrating for me, and I think Hanji could tell that I was miserable. They asked me if I wanted to try a new kind of prosthesis, one of their own design. I was cautious, of course, but I was so fed up with not being able to get anywhere or do anything by myself, that I eventually agreed." He said, pausing to take a drink of his own tea and gather his thoughts.  
"The first set was still pretty simple, but Hanji made them to resemble real limbs better. The arm had an elbow, so it functioned more like a real arm. And the leg actually looked like a leg, instead of a little pole of metal, and it had an ankle. Hanji says I'm really lucky that they only had to amputate below the knee. It would have been a lot harder without that joint. And I've noticed that too. I can use the leg a lot better than the arm. The first arm was actually pretty hard to use. I had to pull a trigger to make the elbow bend, and the hand didn't move at all. But Hanji keeps making new ones, and they get better all the time. These ones are the best so far. Hanji made it so that my remaining muscles and nerves work as the trigger, so I don't really have to put as much effort into moving them. And I can move the wrist now too. I'm working on the fingers, but it's been so long since I've had them that I think my brain kind of forgot how to make them work. If I really concentrate, I can kind of clench my fist, but that's about it. Hanji is trying to make the equipment more responsive to the nerve impulses, but it's hard. Apparently nerves use electricity to tell the body what to do." He explained, and my eyes widened.

"Seriously?" I demanded.

"According to Hanji." He confirmed, nodding.

"But then, why don't we feel it? I've been shocked by an electric lamp, and it was awful enough that I'll never forget it."

"You'll have to ask them, I don't really know. But they said that they'd have to do a lot of research. We still rely mostly upon gas; Electricity is still really new. And it's almost not worth getting the new limbs attached..." He trailed.

"Why not?" I blurted. He frowned, reaching down and fiddling with some of the machinery at his leg. After unscrewing a few bolts and undoing a couple of latches, the bulk of the prosthesis fell off into his waiting hand. He sat it aside before pointing at what was left.

"This is the anchoring point." He began, tapping the metal still attached to his knee. "You can't see, but there are thousands of little connection points, kind of like needles, and each one attaches to a nerve or a part of the muscle. I don't take this part off, ever. My body is actually connected to it, like, it's fused. So to take it off, Hanji has to cut away the muscle and the nerves." My stomach lurched, my brain unable to block out my imaginings of just that. "But that's not really that big of a deal." He continued.

"I can be unconscious for that. It's a little sore afterward, but nothing some medicine can't help. After it's removed, I have to wait a few days for my body to heal itself enough, and then we have to attach a new one. The first prostheses weren't like that; they just strapped or clamped on. But in order to make the limb move, it has to have something to tell it to. So all of the nerves and muscles that were cut away from the previous anchor point? They have to be reattached to the new one. They knock me out for that too, but I have to be awake when they finish it, otherwise the nerves aren't active enough to ensure that they all connect. I'm not really sure how it works, but Hanji said to think of it like a magnet. The electric signals are what draw the nerves to the connector points. The muscle does the job itself, just kind of grows around, but the nerves take some coaxing. So they wake me up right before they seal it, and, well... I can't really describe how painful it is. It's worse than getting my arm bitten off, or my leg crushed. It's kind of like being stabbed and burned at the same time, but you aren't sure if it's hot fire, or if it's really cold, and all you can do is kind of thrash until your body tires out, because the overstimulation of the nerves kind of takes over, and you can't seem to tell your body to stop. I've gotten better at it, now that I've done it a few times. The first time they had to hold me down, and I vomited all over, and eventually just passed out. It was really terrible. Now I can usually keep it pretty minimal, but they strap me down just in case. I've broken a few of my own bones before, so better safe than sorry." He decided, laughing. He put the leg back in place and began the process of screwing it back on. "Anyway, Hanji doesn't change the anchor points very often. I've had these ones for nearly a year. They make me new arms and legs all the time, but they make them to fit into these anchor points, so I don't have to switch, and it's totally painless. But they mentioned that they've been working on a new version, one that should react to my nerves better, and give me more movement, so I might be getting some new ones pretty soon." Marco offered, looking both hopeful and frightened at the same time. I tried to smile. It was a good thing that he'd have more mobility, but I didn't like the idea of him being in so much pain. Marco had always been such a sweet guy, it seemed cruel that he had met a fate like this. But it could have been worse, I decided, finishing the tea. Marco stood up, his leg back in place, and poured me another cup, signaling that I was welcome to stay longer. I smiled for real then, accepting my cup back and stirring it gently.

"Anything else?" He prompted, and I took a moment to think about it.

"Hmm, I don't think so. Oh, wait! I'm curious, actually. What do you do? Eren says you work." I remembered. To be honest, I didn't really know what anyone did for a living. Eren always gave vague answers about what he did, though I assumed it had something to do with his Titan-Shifting. Marco laughed, his eyes closing and nose crinkling softly.

"Well, it depends on the day, really. Most days I end up watching kids, believe it or not." He admitted, chuckling at his own expense. "Everyone does something to contribute, but a lot of parents worry about leaving their kids to fend for themselves, so I've become the designated babysitter. I'm kind of an odd-job worker, I just do the little things that people need done. And since that isn't too strenuous, I'm able to look after a few kids while I'm at it. They're actually pretty helpful, if you get on their good side." He offered with a shrug. "And other days I get some basic Maneuver Gear training." He added. My eyes widened at that.

"Really? You can use it, even with your limbs..." I trailed, and he grinned.

"Yep! I'm pretty good at it, according to some of the others. I have a specialized trigger on the right side, so I can shoot out the grapples just like anyone else. I do tend to favor the left side though, so I have to be really careful about it. And I've never been sent out on any missions where Titans were involved. I'm used as backup, if at all. It's good to learn how to use Maneuver Gear, even if you don't plan to be a soldier or anything." He pointed out, and I nodded. I'd been thinking about it a lot, actually, after seeing that pretty much everyone, at least in the castle and around the cabin, was able to use it.  
"Do you think... Would I be able to learn?" I wondered, and he nodded without hesitation.

"Definitely! But you'll have to wait till that leg heals up. I don't know if you've ever studied Maneuver Gear, but all of the pressure..."

"Is on the legs." I finished, nodding. "So I'll have to build up the strength in this leg before I can do anything. But that's alright, I'm nothing if not patient." I joked, grinning at him. He returned the smile. "Who usually teaches people to use it?" I questioned, thinking of all the people I'd met.

"That one varies. Really, it's just whoever has the time. Eren has led a few sessions, if you can believe it. But, more often than not, the best lessons come from Levi." He replied, and I gasped.

"Captain Levi teaches?" I exclaimed. I'd only seen him one time, other than that first day, and he'd been walking in the other direction. But I knew that he was an amazing soldier, respected as the best of them all inside of the walls. It would be an honor to learn from him.

"Yep, whenever he has the spare time. He's a pretty busy guy."

"Wow..." I breathed, taking a drink to calm myself down. Marco just laughed, leaning back in his chair a bit.

"So, is it my turn now?" He asked. I looked at him stupidly, then realised what he meant.

"Oh! Yes, sorry! I didn't know you had anything to ask me! Go ahead." I blabbered. He smiled, nodding.

"Well, the first thing I want to know about is the town. How is everyone doing? I know I kind of asked before, but you know, anything new?" He wondered. I rolled my eyes.

"No, not really. They're still just as dumb as they always were, following tradition as if it's really going to be their salvation." I spat, and Marco winced.

"Well, I'd have been shocked if you said otherwise. How were you doing there? You know, after me and Eren..." He trailed.

"I... I was surviving. I got a job at one of the taverns, and Mikasa and I lived together. She worked with a seamstress. We weren't very well off, but we had enough to keep a roof over our heads, and to eat often enough not to pass out." I offered, trying to shrug the memories off. "Life seemed a lot harder without Eren, that's for sure. Even after you were sacrificed, Eren tried to keep our spirits up. That's what he does, you know? When he was sacrificed... Everything seemed really dim, hopeless. I had to wonder almost constantly if there was really any point to living anymore. That sounds pretty dismal, I know, but it's hard to think positive when pretty much everyone you love is ripped from your hands. My grandpa died too, a little after Eren. It was so unfair, I felt like the world was out to get me, to make me miserable. But I knew that Mikasa needed me, just as much as I needed her, and I had no right to abandon her like that, so I kept living."

Marco nodded, obviously understanding. I figured I'd answered his question, so I took another drink of the tea, letting its warmth sooth me.

"Well, it sounds like Mikasa is faring pretty well." He tried, and I nodded.  
"Yeah, she was doing better than me, for sure. I don't know about now though. Eren said that they're planning to send for her soon, so I'm just hoping that she can hold on till then." I admitted. We fell silent for a while, and it wasn't one of those companionable silences. We were uncomfortable, and I could tell that Marco wasn't sure how to proceed. He could tell that I wasn't really enjoying the turn the conversation had taken, but I owed it to him to answer his questions, for he'd answered mine, which must have dredged up memories just as painful as my own.

"And... Jean?" He asked, sounding a bit out of breath. I looked up, my eyes flitting over his tan skin, trying to count all of his freckles but losing count almost immediately. I couldn't look him in the eyes as I lied to him.

"He's fine." I replied shortly, and Marco's lips pulled into a frown.

"Armin, please, don't lie to me." He said, putting his cup down. I worried my lip between my teeth, quickly giving myself away. He'd always been good at detecting lies. I sighed.

"To be honest, I don't really know. I didn't see much of him. He joined the military."

"I remember." He assured.

"Well, they keep him pretty busy. He's rarely at home, and when he is, he keeps to himself. I managed to get him to join Mikasa and I for dinner once, but he wasn't really himself. He was really quiet, and didn't pay much attention to the conversation." I admitted, and Marco frowned.

"Do you think... It's because of me?" He questioned, though it was softly, maybe only meant for him. I looked into his eyes at last, trying to convey my answer that way. "I-I tried to tell him not to let my sacrifice bother him. I told him that that's just the way it is. I tried to put up a brave front. But Armin, I think..." He faltered, his breath hitching, and I realised his eyes had become very glassy. "I think he saw." He finally breathed, looking down as a tear slipped past his lid. I took a breath a little too sharply.

"W-What do you mean?" I stammered, too quickly. He took a second to steady his voice, his shoulders shaking with the effort not to cry any more tears.

"I think that h-he was on duty that day." He explained, swiping his arm across his eyes. "I think he was one of the soldiers up on the wall. I couldn't really see all that well, but I think that... I think he..." His chest heaved, and his words broke with sobs.

"God, Armin, what... What would that be like? I-I can't even imagine. Jean was... Is my best f-friend. I mean, w-we practically lived together! We were a-always together, and we t-told each other everything. If I s-saw... If I saw him getting r-ripped apart..." He was unable to speak anymore, burying his face in his palm. I stood, hobbling over awkwardly with the table for support, wrapping my arms about his shoulders when I reached him. They were broad, yet still felt small as they trembled against my embrace. I knew I'd never be able to comfort him. But I could at least offer him some warmth, affection, friendship. He let his hand fall from his face, tentatively hooking it around my back and drawing me against him. He shifted so he could rest his face in the crook of my neck instead, and I was silent as he wept into my shirt.

Had he kept this to himself the entire time? It seemed like he wasn't sure how to deal with his grief, something most learned to do after talking about the issue a few times. But he was unable to stifle his cries, his chest heaving and his frame shaking. He seemed so small to me in that moment, even though he towered over me in size. But he felt fragile, like anything could break him then, and I was too scared to be the thing that did it, so I kept my mouth shut, relying on my body to convey what I meant.

I rubbed small circles against his back, patting it occasionally, squeezing him closer when his sobs reached a fever pitch. And finally, very slowly, he began to calm, his breathing slowing, his body stilling. I let him go when he'd managed to bring it down to just a few hitched breaths every few seconds. He didn't look at me, and I understood that, opting to pour him a cup of tea instead of forcing him to speak again. Once I'd handed him the tea, he gave me nod of thanks and took a long drink, swallowing it slowly. We just sat quietly for a while, allowing him to catch his breath and collect his thoughts.

"I'm sorry." He finally whispered, looking up at me shyly. I shook my head, waving the apology off.

"You don't need to be. I understand." I promised. He tried to smile, but not much came of it.

"Thank you. I just really hope I can see him soon. I miss him a lot." He admitted.  
"I'm sure he misses you too. Are they sending for him, like Mikasa?" I wondered.

"I don't know, actually. I've requested it, but it's a lot harder to convince them to fetch someone involved in the military. With the training they get, it's very possible that they could get back to the walls and tell everyone what's going on out here, and we're just not ready for that yet. But Levi mentioned that he'd been thinking about dropping a few hints to Jean. He's apparently a very good soldier, and we could use his skills out here. I can only hope they decide he should be here." He explained. I frowned.

"Well, I hope so too. It'd be nice to see the old Jean again." I said, and he chuckled a little.  
"Are you sure? He used to pick on you a bit." He reminded me, and I smiled.

"Yeah, I guess he did... But he wasn't really mean, like the other boys. I could tell he didn't dislike me." I remarked, and Marco nodded.

"He liked you, trust me. He actually had a crush on you for a while, until he figured out you were a boy." He confided, and my jaw dropped a bit.

"He thought I was a girl?" I demanded, and Marco giggled.

"For a long time, actually." He confirmed. "And he thought you were all kinds of cute." He added, making my cheeks flush.

"Oh god, that's so weird." I mumbled, and he laughed.

"You think so? I thought it was pretty cute. But I was really jealous." He admitted. I chose to let that one go. I'd always had the suspicion that Marco liked Jean more than the other boy realised. That was his business though, and I preferred not to get involved.

"He lost interest though, right?" I hoped, and he nodded.

"Yeah, after he saw you naked that one time." He agreed. I tried to remember it, and vaguely recalled stripping down to go swimming in the river one day. That would explain why Jean looked so crestfallen the entire time...

"Wow, that's kind of sad. Did you think I was a girl too?" I demanded, and his grin turned into an uncomfortable smile as he looked o the side.

"Aheh, uh, no?" He tried, but I was having none of that.

"Marco!" I groaned.

"Alright, alright, just the first few times we played together! I figured it out before Jean did!" He said, defensively, holding his hands up in surrender. I rolled my eyes, letting out a puff of air.

"You guys are terrible! I'm not _that_ girly looking." I snapped.

"Well, at the time..."  
"Don't even say it." I growled, eliciting a laugh from him. I was glad to have him in good spirits again, so I elected to let it go, and laughed along with him. I would have continued reminiscing, but there was a knock at the door. When Marco called for them to let themselves in, we learned it was Eren, who was apparently looking for me. He seemed relieved to see me, and then angrily informed me of the hour. Apparently I'd been out quite late, and he'd been worried. I giggled at him, but got up, waving goodbye to Marco for the night. Before I could hobble out of his home, I promised to visit again soon, to which he gleefully agreed. Eren simply rolled his eyes, herding me outside and towards the cabin.

A/N: I wanted to get this chapter out before JeanMarco week, which begins on the 11th. I'm planning on opening up prompts, so I'll be kept busy, in regards to writing. If you want to send me a prompt, I'll be opening them on tumblr on the 11th, 12AM sharp! No sooner, no later. Just leave the prompt as an ask, and I'll get to it. I fill ALL prompts that I'm sent, if my fourteen storied EreMin week is any indicator. If you need a link to my tumblr, here it is:  
And if that doesn't show up, you can check my profile, I have links there. Always. And feel free to follow me, I reblog a LOT of SnK, as well as my other various fanthings. (Hetalia, Supernatural, Sherlock, Harry Potter, various anime, funny ass shit, dogs, no cats, I hate cats, hedgies, etc.) Don't feel obliged my pretties, it's just a thing you can do. I'm on tumblr pretty frequently these days. (Who isn't?)  
Gosh, I love Marco. I'm not sure if he was quite in character, but I'm working on it. It's kind of hard, actually, but I imagine he's a little insecure about his missing parts, and is just doing a decent job of hiding it. That's kind of the big part of the side story I was thinking of writing with him and Jean. Still not sure if I should write that... We shall see.

There's going to be another time jump in the next one, I think. But gosh, I still have no idea where I'm going with this now. The only thing I really had in mind was the whole human sacrifice thing, so now that I've got that out of the way, I'm going to have to decide what else will happen. Much to contemplate. But I seriously doubt I'll get another chapter out before JeanMarco week, so I've got some time.  
Hmm... Alright, I'll be going now, I think. I'm going to try and get a nap in before work, since my dad had me up at 6 this morning to drive home. I'm NOT a morning person. Night lovelies!

KuroRiya

九六りや


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